Accident With a Pepsi
by Eldritch-Cien
Summary: Mwahaha! COMPLETE!Loren is playing, no, watching her PS1 when she spills her Pepsi on it.Suddenly, the heroes are there and they're mad as hell.Will Loren survive Cloud's anger or Barret's tallness?Wannabe humor. But very serious. Hope you enjoy. Heehee.
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy or its characters...blah, blah, blah. I do own Loren, though. SO HAH!Err, right. Enjoy!

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Loren relaxed on the couch, taking a sip from a Pepsi. '_Just watching the battle going on and on is making me sleepy._' Loren thought. She had Final Fantasy VII on 'auto pilot', which was basically having Cloud cast Regen, Yuffie casting Big Guard, and Red XIII defending, and letting the monsters bash on them so that their Limit Breaks could fill up. 

"Training is fun and boring at the same time when you can find a way around having to run around because the creatures do not fill up the gauges fast enough" Loren yawned.

The bug-like monsters continued to bash up Cloud and the others. Regen wore away. Loren crawled over to the controller and had Cloud cast Regen again.

"I bet Cloud would be so pissed by now because he is getting his ass kicked but taking no damage. Oh, well. When they are all good and pissed I will end their suffering and have them do overkill to the bugs."

When Loren stood to walk back to her seat, her foot snagged the carpet and her Pepsi spilled all over the Playstation. Her eyes snapped to the television. The screen was frozen and the sound was like a scratched record. Loren cursed under her breath and was taken aback when the characters began to move. Cloud moved first and began to walk toward the screen. The graphics changed to look like they did in Advent Children, though he still had the huge spikes and not the more subtle ones that were in the movie. A voice broke through the repeating noise of the battle theme, and it chilled Loren to the bone. It sounded like Cloud's voice from Kingdom Hearts, but it had a deeper and slightly more melodic tone to it.

"What do you think you're doing?"

Loren had her eyes glued on the screen.

"Wha-what?"

"What is your problem?"

"Huh?"

Cloud stared at her through the screen, his eyes brightly shining with hate through the screen.

"WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM?"

Loren screamed as Cloud's head popped through the screen of her TV.

"DO YOU THINK IT'S HUMANE TO LET THOSE STUPID INSECTS CLAW THE HELL OUT OF US WHILE YOU'RE DRINKING A COKE?"

Loren cowered in the corner of the room while Cloud pushed the rest of the way out of the TV. Red XIII and Yuffie followed right after. Red XIII bared his fangs and claws and Yuffie and Cloud readied their weapons. Loren began to cry. Cloud stuck his sword in front of her face, silencing her.

"I don't need your bawling! I should kill you for treating us so cruelly!"

Loren's face contorted to anger. She glared daggers at Cloud.

"I was not controlling you! If you wanted to fight so badly, why will you not kill them yourself! I should not have to be the one controlling you in a battle! You should take initiative like the monsters and fight without me pressing buttons that tell you what to do! You are not an idiot Cloud…or are you?"

Loren broke out into tears again and Cloud looked to the others for help. Red XIII shook his head and Yuffie shrugged. Cloud hung his head in annoyance and bent down to look at Loren.

"Um, hey, I'm sorry alright? You're right about the initiative thing and…hey! I'm not an idiot!"

Loren stared at him. His blue Mako eyes were slicing into her and she felt a chill go up her back. The eyes were too bright, too clear…

"Where are the others?"

Cloud cocked his head to the side before understanding. He looked to the screen to see all the others wandering around searching for him. Tifa looked directly at the screen and pointed at him.

"Look you guys, it's him! Let's go!"

Everyone began to barrel towards the screen. Loren screamed again and so did Cloud. He had to run away! He had put Tifa out of the party for a reason. She was constantly throwing herself on him, telling him to save her from the creatures that were trying, very successfully at that, to devour her. She always considered Cloud to be a person—or thing more the like—that had to be constantly worried over. He hated that and replaced her with Yuffie. Even Yuffie, who, whenever she got the chance, looked at his ass, was preferable to Tifa. Cloud grabbed Loren's shoulders.

"Hide me! Eep! Tifa is coming closer; you've got to hide me! Red, cover me! Yuffie, conjure a smoke bomb or something!"

Loren pointed with a shaking finger to the closet in the room and Cloud ran inside of it. It was quite extensive in size and the clothes that were inside draped all the way to the floor, providing great hiding spot.

"Boy, does this girl have a dark taste. Almost all of her clothes are black."

He heard a thump in the room and he tensed. They were coming inside. Tifa was coming inside. Cloud slowed his breathing to a minimum and began to sweat profusely. The more he thought of Tifa, the more frightened he got. He didn't even like her appearance. Her clothing was too revealing, and her…upper torso…was too large for someone as thin as her. He heard her voice pierce through the room.

"Excuse me; do you know where Cloud is? I saw him here just a second ago."

Smoke was pouring throughout the room and Loren was beginning to cough as were the others. A huge shadow that she knew was Barret was standing behind Tifa. Loren stared in fright at the huge shady figure. She had known that he was tall, but to see him in real life was just plain frightening. Sitting down as she was, she didn't even reach his knee. She turned her attention to Tifa, who was giving her a questioning stare.

"Do you know where Cloud is?"

"Yea, we need to find the spiky-assed foo', so that we can go and kick Sephiroth's ass."

A huge spear that was better known as the Venus Gospel landed near Loren. She yelped in fright. Cid knelt down to look Loren straight in the eye.

"You f!#$& kid, we need to know where that stupid jackass is or our world will be destroyed. Do you understand that, little girl?"

Loren stared wide-eyed at the middle-aged pilot. He was so calm, yet his eyes betrayed him. His eyes were burning in anger and something resembling worry for Cloud.

"I-I do not know. Smoke was everywhere and then he disappeared."

Tifa slapped Loren.

"You lying bitch! I know Cloud is here! Where is he? Where is he!"

She was near panic in her voice and her hands were shaking against her legs. Loren grew angry then and stood. Tifa stood as well and looked Loren directly in the eye. Loren gave Tifa a cold stare that made Yuffie slowly back away. Loren quickly backhanded Tifa.

"What the hell is your problem? Cloud is a lot stronger than you think he is, and here you go, wondering where in the Nine Hells he is just because you think he is unstable or something! He is a lot stronger than you and getting near the level of power that Sephiroth resides on. That says a lot. Do not go giving anyone your sob story saying that you are worried about Cloud or that he could be in danger! I am surprised anyone even listens to you! Cloud is just fine and you do not need to constantly worry about him. If he is in trouble, that is my job to take care of that, not his worried-beyond-all-reason childhood friend!"

Tifa was struck profoundly and she stared in awe at this girl who seemed so weak just a second ago. Tifa quickly snapped to her senses and prepared to pounce on Loren when Cloud's cool, melodic voice broke through the tension.

"You know Tifa, she's telling the truth."

Tifa whirled around to face him, her face white with anger and shock.

"She's…really telling the truth? Cloud…why didn't you tell me that you felt this way?

You…you horrible person! I'm just worried about your well being! I'll kill you!"

Tifa threw herself toward Cloud.

"TIFA, UNDERSTAND THAT I WASN'T TRYING TO BE RUDE! PLEASE, TIFA, BE REASONABLE!"

Tifa screamed in anger and began to pommel Cloud with her fists. Cloud screamed and flipped her over him. He then pounced on her and pointed his sword at her throat.

"Don't get mad at me for telling the truth. Sorry, honey, but the truth hurts and there's nothing neither you nor I can do about it. _I don't need you_ WORRYING ABOUT ME!"

With that last sentence, he had spoken softly then elevated his voice to a roar. Tifa shrank back from him, tears in her eyes.

"But…Cloud…"

Cloud held up a palm to silence her and turned from her.

"I don't need your crying either. Just shut up and get out of my face."

Vincent looked from Tifa to Cloud, shrugged, and shook his head. Yuffie stared at Cloud's ass, Cid lighted a cigarette, Cait Sith was checking his dice for nicks or scratches, Barret stared at Tifa in annoyance for being so stupid, Red XIII was cleaning his fur, Tifa left the room, and Cloud looked at Loren for a reaction to all of this. She was passive, no longer holding any fear towards them. Vincent, too, looked at Loren.

She was dressed in a black nightshift, bringing him to the realization that it was night. Her hair was jet-black and her skin looked like it was made of porcelain because of its odd glowing quality and paleness. Her passive stare at the floor shifted to him, and he stared right back with his own passive stare. The corners of her mouth crinkled downward and she turned away from him to look at Cloud. Vincent once again shrugged and left the room to stare at the moon that was shining brightly through the window.

Cloud looked into Loren's eyes to see if any reaction would come from her at all. Loren's eyes dilated and she looked toward the door.

"What are you going to do about her?"

"Nothing at all; I don't care if Tifa is mad at me for telling her the truth."

"It was actually me who told her, but you did not deny it, so that does mean that you told her, if only subtly."

Cloud nodded. He then smiled at her.

"I like your outfit. I never paid much attention before, but now that I've seen it, I like it."

Loren turned a light shade of pink.

"You think so? It is only a nightshift, but I do find it kind of enticing in a neat way."

Cloud raised an eyebrow. He touched the long silken black sleeve and chuckled.

"Yes it is, in a way. But not the way you may see it. It feels so…nice."

Loren immediately understood his meaning and pounced on him, raining blows on his head.

"You pervert, get out of my house! You disgusting…I thought you had some morals of honor!"

Cloud laughed and grimaced as blow after blow continued to rain on his head. The blows suddenly stopped as Loren was lifted into the air by Barret.

"Put me down, Barret! Let me finish him!"

"Kid, you hones'ly need to calm down. He may be a horrible stupid-ass foo', but you don't need to pommel him to death. He jus' appreciates how you look. He really does have good morals."

Loren stopped struggling against Barret and the faint color she had in her cheeks a moment ago faded away. She looked to Cloud who was brushing himself off as if nothing happened and touched Barret's arm, signifying for him to let her go, that everything was alright now. Barret complied and walked off to poke fun at Red XIII's tail, which the owner began to swish around dangerously, daring Barret to continue. Loren stepped forward to stare Cloud in the eye and promptly slapped him. He quickly raised his head and stared at her in something resembling either anger or surprise, perhaps both. Loren didn't even flinch under his bright, icy stare.

"I forgive you Cloud, but you had best not make comments like that again, lest I rip your tongue out."

Cloud pursed his lips and rubbed the slap mark.

"Okay, that's fine, but how the hell did you learn to slap like that?"

The corners of Loren's mouth twitched, trying not to smile.

"Let us just say I have had years of experience due to certain events in the past."

Cloud quickly left the subject at that and began to walk off. Loren grabbed his arm before he passed her. He looked at her in near unease and didn't move an inch. Her eyes were downcast and her touch was unusually gentle.

"I am sorry about Aeris. There was nothing I could do to stop him from killing her. Cloud…I am sorry I could not keep her alive."

Cloud touched her shoulder.

"You wouldn't have been able to stop him anyway, even if you could do something. We weren't strong enough and I doubt you could control us at the time."

Loren nodded.

"Yes, you are right. It was all cinematic, so I could not do anything even if I tried unless I somehow magically entered your world, but not even then, because I doubt I would be strong enough to even scratch Sephiroth."

Cloud winced at hearing Sephiroth's name, but took it all in good stride. He smiled warmly and walked off to stand next to Vincent. Loren cast a disapproving glance Vincent's way. She felt the evil within him begging to come out, and she didn't know how long he would be able to contain his inner demons.

Vincent could hear Chaos begging him to be let out. Chaos was yearning to "explore" this new place, this new planet, but Vincent wouldn't let it out. He didn't like the glance that Loren was sending him, but he ignored it. Could she sense Chaos inside of him? Of course, he thought. She had seen him transform several times and knew what he truly was. He sent his own glare towards her, mainly to make her turn away, but a part of him worried about her appearance. She was far too pale to be healthy, but her hair was glossy and her skin nearly glowed. Perhaps it's just the light, he mused. Maybe when she was out during the day her skin would be normal. No, that would only make her skin glow even more. All forms of light probably made her skin glow. What was wrong with her? She was shocked and crying at first, but right afterward she was passive and formal.

Vincent frowned even more, but he looked away and shoved all thoughts of Loren away. He had more pressing matters, namely Chaos. He was so preoccupied that he didn't notice Cloud speaking to him.

"Vincent! Vincent, are you alright? Answer me; wake up from your little trance thingy!"

Vincent looked down slightly at Cloud, who was only three inches shorter than him. Then again, being six feet tall was quite an accomplishment in the height world. Unfortunately, Sephiroth was an inch taller than him and Barret was four inches taller than him. Thankfully, they were the only two, so he was taller than everyone else.

"What, Strife?"

"Are you alright? You wouldn't answer me after three tries, and that's pretty scary, considering I was almost yelling!"

Vincent shook his head.

"I understand. I was just thinking about things."

"What things?"

"You don't need to know, Strife."

Cloud shrugged.

"What did you want?"

"What?"

"Why were you constantly calling me for? What was so important?"

Cloud shrugged again.

"I forgot. You got me so worried that my mind went blank right after you didn't answer for the third time."

Vincent rolled his eyes and stalked off to the window, his cloak (cape, cloak, whatever) trailing in the air behind him. He saw the moon shining brightly, its crescent form suspended in the midnight star-studded sky. It seemed just like the moon back in his world, yet it felt different. The moon told him that he was not on his home planet. It shone brilliantly with a vigor that told said it was still young and that the planet wasn't dying. The air in this place felt pure, no pollution or monsters plaguing it. He breathed in the scent deeply, letting its pureness fill his lungs. A jolt of pain suddenly tore through his body, causing him to hiss and double over. He clutched his head, trying to figure out what caused this. He then realized what it was; Chaos. He felt Chaos beginning to rip at his mental defenses, trying to make him submit to its will.

"Chaos, I will not let you wreak havoc on this world! I already have enough sins to atone for. I do not want another to further add to my burden!"

Chaos was obviously not paying attention because he still tore at Vincent's mental defenses. Vincent ran inside trying to get people's attention. He felt himself getting weaker and barely made it inside before collapsing. The last thing he saw was Loren's grimace and heard Chaos's guttural laughing in his mind before passing out.

Loren watched Vincent go outside the door with caution. She had to watch him no matter what. She couldn't trust him with his demons tearing at him on the inside. She felt one of the stronger demons, Chaos no doubt, prodding at Vincent, trying to make him submit. She knew it would only be a matter of time before he fell to Chaos or one of the others and transformed, creating a mess that she would have to clean up. Her hypothesis came true a moment later when Vincent grabbed his stomach and doubled over in pain. Worry welled up in her, but she didn't show it.

Vincent ran inside, trying to get people's attention. He collapsed to the floor and looked up at her, seeing her grimace, before passing out. She heard the distinct rip of clothes and knew she only had a few seconds before one of the demons emerged, so she jumped on him and pinned him to the ground. He completely transformed under her and struggled to get loose, but she was surprisingly strong. Chaos had emerged in all its violet glory and sneered at Loren. It gave a guttural laugh and snapped at her hands with its fangs, but she deftly avoided them and retained her position for hours (I have no idea how she of all people could hold down Chaos, I mean its _Chaos_, man!). After all of those tiring hours, Chaos was finally submissive and began to transform back into Vincent. Loren promptly removed her self from Vincent and stood over him.

Vincent opened his eyes to show his crimson orbs. He sat up and looked around. Cloud, Loren, Barret, and the others were standing over him, their eyes laced with worry. Well, all except Loren's. Her steel-gray eyes were filled with distrust, but did he see a hint of relief or was it his imagination? She turned her back to him and muttered 'You're welcome.' before walking off to a room to his right. What had she done?

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A/N: If you read this, thank you so much! I know I'm not much of a writer,but I must say I think I did a good job on this one. Anyways, please review...**_or Seph dies! _**(Dun dun duun!)

Seph: What! How could you? I thought we had a great friendship going on here! I will destroy you with Masamune!

Author: You draw your blade and I'll shoot you now, review or no.

Seph: (whimper) Alright, fine.

Author: (points gun at Seph) Just for safe measure. Please review! Hee hee! XD


	2. Chapter 2

Vincent stood abruptly and strode over to Loren.

"Hey, what did you do back there?"

Loren shrugged.

"I only did what was necessary."

Vincent lowered his head.

"Thank you."

Loren looked him in the eyes and pointed a finger at him.

"If your demons ever begin to come out again, I will kill you. Do you understand me, Vincent?"

Vincent nodded gravely.

"Yes, I understand. I know that you do not want your world to get hurt."

"I am not doing this for the world. I am doing this for myself and nobody else."

Vincent nodded again.

"I understand."

He turned and began to walk away, but Loren stopped him before he could go far.

"Vincent, try your best not to let them overcome you. I do not want any unnecessary blood shed…."

Vincent tilted his head to the side.

"Thank y-"

"I do not want my carpet to get dirty. It would take so long to clean."

Vincent bit back his words before he finished. He thought that at least once she had shown compassion for him, but it was for her _carpet_. He whirled away from her and went to stand by a wall. Was he mad at her for not caring about him? _No, that is ridiculous_, he thought, _I am just mad because I had misinterpreted her words and meant to say thank you for no reason.'_ He reassured himself several times before he let his thoughts drift back to the past.

Loren watched Vincent leave with earnest curiosity. Why had he just left so suddenly? _'He is mad at me for some reason. I did something wrong.' _She thought. But what was it that she had done wrong? She let the question settle in her skull and blew it off. _'Why should I care what anyone thinks? The last time I trusted anyone else's thinking I nearly went insane.' _She walked over to Cloud who was trying to scare Yuffie.

"Yuffie, if you keep staring at my ass I'll either gouge your eyes or I'll cut my ass off!"

Yuffie shrieked and turned around. Cloud snickered.

"That works so well."

Loren gave Cloud a quizzical look and he shrugged.

"Hey, even if the best ideas are gross, you've got to use them to save your ass, am I right?"

"Yes, I suppose you are right."

Cloud stared at Loren.

"What was that thing with Vincent all about? He seems really angry."

"I do not know. I only told him that I did not want any unnecessary bloodshed. He then began to say something, but I cut him off and said that I did not want to get my carpet dirty. He then whipped around and stalked off to his little corner."

"I see. He was probably taking your first comment as kind words and began to thank you, but you then said a self-centered remark that got him mad because he was thanking you for nothing."

Loren gave him a bewildered look.

"How did you come up with such a hypothesis?"

Once again, Cloud shrugged.

"I've been around Vincent for quite some time now. He's spoken to me more than once about his…_secret_…emotions, the emotions that he never shows anyone. Then again, he never shows much emotion, does he? I don't blame him, though. I would be the same if I had been locked in a coffin in a creepy ass cursed basement for God-knows-how-long."

Loren mimicked his movement. She shrugged. She then went to look for Tifa. She had no idea why she wanted to talk to her, but she wanted the group united no matter what. When she approached Tifa, the woman tensed visibly.

"What do you want?"

"Come back inside. They all need you, even though it does not seem so."

"How would you know? You don't even know them!"

"I know them better than you think. I have been with them for over seventy-two hours, including you. Do you honestly think that I would not know them all by now?"

"Okay, well…how tall is Barret?"

"He's six-foot four standing at full height."

"Who was Red XIII's father? And what is Red XIII's real name?"

"His father was Seto and his real name is Nanaki."

Tifa was getting frustrated.

"Where was Cloud born? What was Vincent in the past?"

"Cloud was born in Nibelheim and Vincent was a Turk."

"What is Cait Sith?"

"Cait Sith is a robot that is controlled by Reeve."

"Rr! What are our weapons called?"

"Specify which ones you speak of."

"Our ultimate weapons."

"Ultima Weapon, Premium Heart, Limited Moon, Missing Score, Princess Guard, HP Shout, Conformer, Venus Gospel, and Death Penalty."

"How the hell…! Okay, what are our final Limit Breaks?"

"How long will these questions go on?"

"Just answer!"

"sigh Omnislash, Final Heaven, Cosmo Memory, Catastrophe, Great Gospel, Slots, All Creation, Highwind, and Chaos."

Tifa began to tap her foot.

"What are the summons?"

"Choco-mog, Shiva, Ifrit, Ramuh, Titan, Odin, Leviathan, Bahamut, Bahamut Neo, Bahamut ZERO, Kujata, Alexander, Phoenix, Hades, Typhoon, and Knights of the Round."

"DAMMIT! Do I love Cloud?"

Loren gave Tifa a cold stare.

"You have never been able to figure that out ever since you were a child. You do, but you do not. You can never make up your mind."

Tifa stared at the ground while a red hue flushed up her cheeks. Loren stepped forward.

"Go inside. Forget that this ever happened. I will never mention this again as long as you do not even hint that you want to leave the team. You leave the team when Cloud says so. He is your leader and you follow his orders. He cares about you and you care about him. Do not forget that."

Loren stepped inside and Tifa silently followed after.

A/N: Hey again, and if you are reading this you are the bravest people on this planet. I love you all and thanks so much for the reviews! SephirothValentine, I thank you for your comment. I tried to fix up Cloud as much as I could. Bluedranzer77, I appreciate your comment. Please, don't kill Sephiroth until I finish with my own death threat. Especially with a frying pan hides from pan They're evil! Speaking of which…if you don't review, I'll kill Sephiroth with…a pen!

Seph: A pen? Are you joking?

Author: No. I'll certainly destroy you with my black pen and all its inky poison. The point is sharp, too. It's a ballpoint gel pen.

Seph: trembles in fear What? Sharp and inky? Keep it away from me! AAAAHHH!

Author: points pen at Seph's eyes I'll start with your eyes. Please review! Uwee hee!

Seph: whimper


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Geez, you guys, I've never gotten this many reviews. The largest number of reviews I ever had was 2! Then it changed to 3 with you all and then it doubled into six! I'm so happy happy happy! starts writing on Sephiroth

Seph: Hey, what are you doing!

Evil Strigoi (me!): I'm writing my next chapter on you!

Seph: AHHH, I'm going to get ink poisoning!

ES: At least you'll die happy because you're going to get me more reviews (I hope)!

Seph: sigh Fine, do what you must.

ES: Yayness! Please read and review this one pleez! Oh, and I'll give you a hint on the pairings since you asked so nicely. Study Vinnie's thoughts closely and you'll figure out the first one. Oh, and there's gonna be a mushy scene in this chap. Loren kinda bears her inner emotions to a certain gun-slinger. The second pairing should be easy enough. Cloudy kinda likes a certain girl, but is still annoyed by her over protectiveness. Okays, now that that is settled, let's get on with the storieeeeeeeeeeeeeee! (Coffee. It does that to you.)

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"Hey, Tifa! So you decided to join us again. I'm shocked!"

Barret laughed and clapped her on the back. Tifa nearly choked with the force of the blow, but she laughed with him. Loren observed her carefully and knew that it was just a façade to keep everyone's spirits up. Loren inwardly smiled. At least she's cooperating and trying to keep the team together. Loren paused and scanned the room for Vincent. He was over in the corner, his arms crossed, looking gloomy. Loren raised an eyebrow. Was he still brooding over what she had said? _Just forget it and join the group already, you idiot! _Loren screamed inside her head. She left him at that and looked to see where everyone else was. Red was cleaning his fur; Yuffie was sitting down near a wall, her head buried in her knees. Barret and Tifa were talking about how it would be nice to go back to Seventh Heaven; Cloud was staring at Tifa, looking as if he were guilty of something. _Probably because he hurt her feelings, _thought Loren. Cid was smoking a cigarette by the couch, which Loren promptly smacked out of his mouth. Cid gave her a murderous look. Loren crossed her arms.

"There will be no smoking inside my apartment! I do not want to run the risk of having my home burnt down."

"Gah! Damn it, girl! My cigs are my only release from all the fighting and stress!"

"Well if you want to smoke, do it outside. You can do whatever you want outside, but as long as you are in my home, you will not smoke indoors."

"Fine! I'll go smoke outside, if you want to be so stubborn. God, you fuckin' people are so…so…gah! Forget you all! I don't give a damn what you all think!"

Cid stormed outside and left Loren wondering how someone could get so worked up over a cigarette. Loren found Cait Sith playing with his dice. Somehow, most of the time he got double sixes. She left him alone and walked over to Vincent. He looked up and stared at her with his crimson orbs. His eyes seemed hollow at the time, as if he were nothing but a shell inside.

"Vincent, get back into the main crowd. You seem very lonely in your little corner."

"I would rather not. I have always been on the outside of the group and put in my opinion and knowledge only when I find it necessary."

"I understand that, Vincent. But you have to truly be a part of the group or you will never regain your humanity."

"There is no point in trying to gain my humanity back. My sins have already destroyed my human side."

Loren frowned. She placed her hand on his chest and felt his beating heart. She felt the warmth of his skin under the clothing. Vincent's heart beat quickened.

"You seem very alive to me. Your heart beats with much strength. I can feel the warmth of your body. If your humanity side was dead, I would not feel warmth. If your humanity side was dead, I would not feel your heart. If you were to join the group and be social, you would not feel the burden of your sins weighing down your heart. You would regain the rest of your humanity. Despite the demons in you, I know your humanity is hidden deep inside of you. You just do not want to bring it out because you fear rejection."

"Perhaps you are right. Perhaps you aren't. Either way, I do not want to find out."

Loren grabbed his arm and led him to her room. When she closed the door, she went over to him and gripped his chin and forced him to look her in the eye. He seemed more than a little surprised. She pointed to her forehead.

"Do you see this?"

Vincent looked at her forehead and found a hardly visible but large mark in the right corner. He gave her a puzzled look, and then averted his eyes. She gave no complaint or forced him to look at her again.

"I was walking down a dark alley because it was the quickest way home. I was ambushed. I had been isolated at the time, having no friends or any general communication with the world. I was forcefully taken and beaten. I woke up two days later, naked and nearly broken. I had a large gash on my forehead and I was still bleeding."

Loren's voice was beginning to crack.

"I do not know how I was even alive, but I pushed myself to rise and make my way to a hospital. I drifted in and out of consciousness for just about three weeks. I do not want anything similar to that day to happen to anyone that I know."

When Vincent stared into her steel-gray eyes, they were rimmed with tears.

"It is a pain far beyond comprehension. I especially do not want that to happen to you or any other of you all. Even though I believed you to only be pixels, I still felt a pleasant, albeit strange, bond with you all. I grew to care for you all. I nearly cried when Aeris…left to the Lifestream."

Her body was softly shaking. Taken aback, Vincent awkwardly grasped her shoulders and held her close to him. She gave no resistance. In fact, she leaned into him a little bit.

"I do not want that to happen to any of you. No one. Deserves. My fate. No one. WHY COULDN'T THEY JUST LEAVE ME ALONE?"

Vincent was shocked at her last statement. He had never heard her scream, much less use a contraction. She had said 'couldn't'. How strange. _It's interesting at what wild emotions can do to you…how they can change you, if only for a little while_, Vincent mused. Loren finally grabbed onto him and held onto him as if he were her lifeline. He held onto her a little tighter as well. He made sure that his claw hand didn't snag her clothing. He had a strange, fluttery feeling in his chest that he couldn't explain. He remembered having this feeling once before, but he couldn't recall anything right now. He simply enjoyed the feeling inside of him and the feeling of her holding on to him. For the first time in nearly 3 decades, he smiled.

* * *

A/N: Hey guys, sorry I took so long! I've been practicing a lot with my violin for Regionals, cause once school starts, it's all over. So again, sorry, but I finally got it finished. I'm quite determined to finish this one. I've been urged and encouraged (especially by you guys!) so I'm gonna do it. I hope you review again, or I will cook up another way to kill Sephiroth. Hey that's a pretty good idea! If you don't review, I'll cook Seph and eat him for dinner!

Seph: You'll actually eat me?

ES: Why of course! I'll be poking and prodding at you with a thermometer and those pitchfork thingies until you're completely cooked.

Seph: Come on, can't you at least let up on the threats for a while?

ES: NO! Ask that again, and I will kill you reviews or not!

Seph: (grumble) Fine.

ES: Please review!Yayness!


	4. Chapter 4

Loren stayed in Vincent's arms for a while, until she stopped crying. Vincent still felt awkward, but he held on anyway.

"Loren…are you okay now?"

Loren pulled away from Vincent's arms and brushed herself off.

"Excuse me, Vincent. I did not mean to act to foolishly. I apologize if I stained your clothes with my tears."

Vincent stood and smirked.

"Don't worry. The tears are not what bothered me."

Loren's eyes narrowed.

"What bothered you, then? I did not know that anything had bothered you in the first place."

"What frightened me is that you actually yelled and used a contraction. It seemed so out of character for someone like you."

Loren nodded.

"I see. I understand your shock, Vincent. I apologize for frightening you."

"Don't. What I want to know though….is…."

"What Vincent? What do you need to know that you are so hesitant to ask of?"

"Why had you isolated yourself all that time ago?"

Loren turned her back to him and laughed grimly.

"My parents had left me out on the streets when I was a young teenager. I lived in dark alleys and ate whatever I could find. I listened to the wrong type of people and fell into a dark hole that I could not get out of for a very long time. I had nearly gone insane listening to those people, doing horrible things like slaughtering, thieving, and lying. I had begun to cut myself due to stress and whatnot. I was eventually left alone to rot and be alone, so I figured never to trust everyone and cut myself off from the rest of the world. I worked my way up to the top and got myself a job in my mid-teens. After working for a few years, I got this apartment and have lived here, alone, starting since 5 years ago."

"You sound like you're in your thirties. And yet you're still playing games?"

"I am actually twenty-four and I play games because it keeps my imagination alive. I do not want to be an uninteresting adult that does nothing but work. I put in time for myself."

Vincent thought to himself, _But she's so young…how could she have gone through all of that and still be in her early twenties?_

"Vincent."

Vincent snapped to reality and looked at her. She crossed her arms.

"How old are _you_?"

Vincent shrugged.

"Older than you are, you can be sure of that."

"Let me make a rough estimation. You are somewhere around…your fifties, am I correct?"

Vincent almost choked on himself.

"Wh…how did you know that?"

Loren laughed aloud.

"Well…it would have to be logical that you were in your twenties when you were in the Turks. Sephiroth was not even born at the time when you were put in the coffin and locked away in the Shinra basement. Sephiroth is now somewhere around his twenties or thirties and Cloud just found you a few months ago. If you add all the years together, you should well be in your fifties. But, due to genetic experimentation, you are ageless and look like you are your original age, just with long hair, crimson eyes, dark clothing, and an arsenal of demons at you disposal."

Vincent couldn't help but admire her intelligence.

"Heh, you can truly astound me at times, Loren."

Loren smiled and flipped a hand through her hair.

"I have one more question, though."

Her smile faded a little bit.

"What is it?"

"Why are you telling me all of this?"

Loren walked up to him and grabbed his arm. Her voice was a soft murmur.

"Because you are the only one who bothered to ask."

Vincent's heartbeat quickened again.

"Now if you will excuse me, I need to go to bed. When you all get tired, find a suitable spot to sleep and do not make a mess. I will make you all breakfast tomorrow."

Vincent nodded his head and began to step out of the door when Loren's voice stopped him.

"Sleep well, Vincent."

"You too, Loren."

Vincent stepped outside and silently shut the door behind him. When he entered the living room, everyone's eyes were on him. Cloud spoke first.

"Hey Vince, what was that all about?"

Vincent remained detached.

"It was nothing that you need to worry about."

Cid raised a hand in the air significantly.

"Like hell it was nothing! The girl f------ screamed, for Christ's sake! Vincent, I mean come on, the girl practically says nothing, much less screams!"

Tifa nodded her agreement.

"Yeah, who was 'they', and why wouldn't 'they' leave her alone?"

Vincent held up his hand to stop any upcoming questions.

"Her business is her business. I will not tell you what she told me. It would be like reliving a nightmare. And do not bother asking her, because it would be even worse for her."

Cloud studied his movements and expressions carefully.

"You're hiding something, Vince."

"Oh, am I?"

"Yeah, you're hiding something other than what she told you."

Everyone leaned in to hear what Vincent had to say.

"Well…she was able to tell my accurate age…well…rough accurate age."

Everyone sneaked glances at each other. Tifa looked him in the eye.

"How old are you anyway, Vincent?"

"Do you want the complete and honest truth?"

"Yes."

Everyone nodded their accord.

"All right…I am in reality 57 years old, but I will eternally look like I am 27. Does that surprise you?"

Half of the people's jaws were open in disbelief. Vincent walked past all of them and stood by the window once again like he had only a few hours ago. The moon had already gone but the sky was lit with stars and the lights of the town he was in. He left the window and went out the balcony door. He stood out on the balcony and let the cool breeze whip through his hair and clear his mind of all troubling thoughts. He felt a presence join him out on the balcony.

"Hello, Strife."

"I know that that wasn't all that you were hiding. I know that there's something else. What really went on in there?"

Vincent sighed and lowered his head to look down at the ground below him.

"I am just a little disturbed at what she told me. She told me of her life."

Cloud shook his head.

"No, that's not all. When you came out of her room, your chest was rising quicker than normal. Something made your heart accelerate."

"I always thought that you were clueless Cloud, but I guess not all the time, right?"

Cloud laughed and stood by Vincent. A few minutes passed in silence and the two friends stared at the sky, longing to touch the stars and be cleansed of everything that troubled them. Cloud finally asked again what he had asked a few minutes ago.

"So what was it that made your heart race?"

Vincent looked Cloud straight in the eye.

"She cried."

Cloud stared skeptically at him.

"I held her…close to me. After a few seconds, she latched onto me like there was no tomorrow. I held her…and it felt good. She was still crying, but it felt good."

Cloud nodded and touched his friend's shoulder.

"It's okay. I've comforted Tifa plenty of times and every time, it's strange and somewhat uncomfortable, but it makes me feel good like it was what I was supposed to do. Don't shy away from it. If she needs you, she'll come to your arms, since you are the first one that comforted her. Accept it, and you won't be alone for much longer."

Vincent closed his eyes and let his mind settle on Cloud's words. _"Accept it, and you won't be alone for much longer." "Don't shy away from it." _Was Cloud implying for him to be with her so that she could find comfort in his arms; so that he could feel good? _Probably. Strife is the type that would turn into a ladies man at any given time. _Vincent studied the possibilities. He could find someone to hold, to be with, so he wouldn't be alone anymore. But what of Lucrecia? His thoughts snapped at that moment. Lucrecia! That's where he had had that feeling before. He had had that feeling of light-heartedness when he was Lucrecia! He felt a heavy weighing on his heart then. How could he develop feelings for Loren when Lucrecia could still be alive? He kept his eyes downcast as he felt a new sin developing on his conscience. He might've tempted Loren's heart when he didn't mean to. He might have a while ago. He might have wanted Loren to like him when he was holding on to her and her holding on to him. But not now. Not now that he remembered Lucrecia. He heard nothing but his own pounding heart as he went back inside the apartment. With a heavy heart, he settled on a wall near the couch and closed his eyes. He fell into a fitful sleep. Cloud had remained on the balcony and after a few minutes, Tifa joined him.

"Cloud, is Vincent all right? When he walked inside, he was really solemn and said nothing to anyone."

Cloud shook his head.

"I'm really stumped this time. He walked past me without responding to my calling him. He seemed to be thinking of something and then he grew really sad looking. I asked him what was wrong but he didn't answer. When I called his name he only walked inside and kept his eyes down."

"Do you think it's about Loren?"

Cloud shrugged.

"I don't know. I honestly can't tell from his expression. He could be fighting against Chaos again or he could be thinking of our world or he could really be thinking about her. I just can't tell."

"I'm worried Cloud."

Cloud grabbed her hand and pulled her closer to him.

"Don't worry Tifa. I'm sure he'll be just fine in the morning."

"I hope so."

Cloud held her close to him and smelled her hair. It still smelled like the ocean after everything that they had been through. He released her and the two walked inside. Mostly everyone was asleep, save for Barret and Cid, who were playing poker with a pack of cards Cid had stashed in his pocket. Cloud and Tifa stepped over the sleeping bodies and found their own sleeping spot. After a few minutes, they too drifted off to sleep.

Loren lay awake on her bed, thinking of what had just transpired. She had never meant to go off like that. She just wanted to show Vincent the consequences of being alone. She had gotten somewhat nervous when Vincent asked why she was telling him everything. The answer she had given him was only a half truth. She had felt comfortable in his presence; as if she could completely trust him with everything she had to say. When she had sneaked out of her room to check if everyone was asking him questions, she was correct in guessing so. She knew that she had yelled much too loudly and that everyone would have heard. She knew then that her trust was well placed. Vincent had cut off all of their questions and had gone off to stare at the sky.

She quietly slipped back in her room and lay back down. She had gotten a little worried though when she slipped back out later on to find Vincent lying against a wall, his head down, his right hand clenched and his claw hand hanging freely on his knees. Before he had looked up, she had gone back inside her room. Her heart felt strange. She had never felt something like this before. It felt like her heart was begging her to bring Vincent back in her room, but she refused its call and fell asleep.

* * *

A/N: Hey all! I hope this chapter wasn't too long or boring (eep! I wouldn't be able to live if I knew that!). Unfortunately, I can't find Sephiroth, so I can't give him death threats so that you all can review. I can only pray to the Final Fantasy and fan fiction gods for luck. Thanks for keeping me going, you all. Oh, but what's strange is that I've searched everywhere for Seph, and I mean everywhere, and there's no trace of him. I'm thinking that he may have grown tired of my idle threats and decided to join the dead party that is my fic. I suppose that he wants more action and life in it, so he's gone. (tear) I'll miss threatening him! ToT Please review! 


	5. Chapter 5

Loren awoke to see her dark ceiling above her. She looked at her clock. 5:07 a.m. She rose out of bed and went to the bathroom. When she got out, she looked out her window and realized that it was raining. It was raining _very_ hard, at that. Lightning flashed. _'Wow, this is so strange. I had seen not so much as a cloud in the sky last night. What would bring on such a powerful storm?'_ She thought. Thunder nearly shook her entire apartment. _'I wonder if all the others have woken up due to this.' _For some reason, something didn't feel right to Loren. Lightning flashed again and this time, she saw someone sitting on her bed. The person's eyes were glowing brightly, even in the darkness of her room. Lightning flashed again and she could finally see who the intruder was.

"Sephiroth," she muttered.

The silver-haired monster smiled and laughed softly, but the laughter wasn't humoristic. It was evil. Lightning flashed again, and he was gone. Her blood ran cold. She walked to the door and jiggled the door handle. It was locked. She turned the handle over and over, but it wouldn't budge. She kicked the door with all of her strength, but it didn't even creak. She began to get afraid. She saw the lightning flash again behind her, and began to cry out in desperation.

"Vincent! Vincent, help me! Get me out of here!"

She felt leather covered hands grip her shoulders and she froze.

"They aren't going to hear you."

"What do you want?"

She felt his breath tickle her ear.

"Are you sure you're on the right side?"

Her back stiffened.

"Of course I am on the right side!"

A soft chuckle escaped his lips.

"Well I suppose that is just too bad."

The hands disappeared from her shoulders. She sighed in relief, but the end of the sigh got caught in her throat as a sword ran through her abdomen. She looked down and saw the cruel tip of the Masamune coming out of her stomach. She mustered up the rest of her strength and let out an ear-splitting scream as he laughed manically before she fell into everlasting darkness.

* * *

Loren awoke, screaming, being held down by a pair of strong hands. 

"Loren, Loren! Its okay, you can stop fighting now. It's over."

The deep monotone voice snapped her back to reality. She leapt forward.

"Vincent! Vincent, you're here! I'm so glad! I thought I would never see you again!"

Vincent's voice caught in his throat. She was worried that she would never see him again. She used two more contractions. Was he changing the way she acted? He held her as she clutched his shirt, strangely beginning to cry again.

"What did you dream about, Loren? What made you so afraid?"

The next word that she whispered hit Vincent profoundly.

"Sephiroth."

He held her away from him and looked into her steel-gray eyes. They were rimmed with worry.

"He was in my room. He kept disappearing. I called out for you, but he said that you could not hear. He then asked if I was on the right side. I said that I was and he said that it was too bad. I felt relieved, but he then stabbed me through the stomach with the Masamune and I screamed before I died. I was so afraid. I did not think that I would see any of you ever again."

Vincent all of a sudden remembered his new sin and let go of her.

"Do you feel better?"

"Yes, thank you Vincent."

Vincent nodded and rose. He turned to leave, but paused to listen to Loren's inaudible muttering. He could hardly hear, but he heard catches of sentences like, "what is happening to me?", "strange feeling", "careless", "weak", and "how foolish". He left her room and went back to his old spot. She had dreamt about Sephiroth questioning her loyalties. He had moved her heart. She probably had feelings for him; strange how she had hated him at first. He sat there for more than half an hour before she came out, now in black pants and a white tank top. '_At least when she wears a white shirt, her skin looks pinker and not so pale.' _Vincent thought. She moved towards the kitchen, deciding to make breakfast since it was 6:12 a.m. She fished a box of eggs out of the fridge and took out a package of bacon. She filled a can with water and dumped it into a coffee machine. She stuck coffee grounds in the machine and started it up. She used the entire box of eggs and used the entire package of bacon. What would you expect? She had to feed nine people, including herself and all but three of the people were men. She was so glad that she had bought a deluxe apartment. Strange thing was that all of them had slept in the living room and had chosen the floor over the room next to hers. Eventually the smell of coffee, eggs, and bacon began waking people up and drawing them to the kitchen. Yuffie was the first to arrive other than Vincent because he was already there. She smelled the food longingly and gave Loren pleading eyes. She acted like a strict mother.

"I will not let you eat until everyone is up."

Yuffie pouted and asked where the bathroom was. Loren told her and Yuffie ran off. The next to come was Red XIII. He sniffed the food and plopped down next to Vincent, waiting patiently. One by one, the heroes came to the kitchen and sat at the bar. When Yuffie came back, she tenderly presented the food to everyone and allowed them to get their fill. She got herself a cup of black coffee and sat, satisfied with her work, sipping her coffee quietly. Vincent eyed her. _'She seems so at peace with what she has done. She seems so selfless right now. I don't know what I'm going to do…the odd feeling is growing stronger in me every day.' _He gave another genuine smile and continued to eat his breakfast. Loren and a couple others caught his smile, but kept it to themselves. Yuffie walked up to Loren.

"Umm…can I have what you're drinking? It looks and smells really good."

Loren gave Yuffie a confused look.

"Haven't you ever had coffee before, Yuffie?"

Yuffie stopped and so did many others.

"Did you just use a contraction?"

Loren gazed around at the rest of the faces. They were all asking the same question. Heck, she was even asking herself that question. She quickly regained any composure that she had lost.

"Yes, I did. Is that such a problem?"

"No, it's just that we've never heard you use a contraction before," Cloud stated.

Most nodded in unison.

"Oh. I guess it is kind of strange, isn't it?"

Yuffie shook her head.

"Definitely strange."

Loren poured a cup of coffee and asked Yuffie if she wanted cream. Yuffie nodded and Loren poured the cream in it. She added two teaspoons of sugar and mixed it all together. She handed the cup to Yuffie and she took a small sip. It was hesitant at first, but eventually she was downing the stuff like Kool-Aid. Loren had a bad feeling about this. _'She's probably going to get so hyper she'll be bouncing off the walls.'_ Loren mused. She had no idea how right she was.

Two hours later a super-hyper Yuffie was rambling on about materia and the Materia Bunny.

"You see, materia is watched over and delivered by the Materia Bunny. It goes 'wee!' and 'skree!' and then POOF! You have a super powerful materia in your hands. It's nothing like the Easter Bunny where it's allll happyyy and pink and whatnot and delivers chocolate eggs and confetti eggs and poopy eggs and whatever. The Materia Bunny is a huge mechanic robot bunny that gives out whatever kind of materia you wish for. I have always wondered why the bunny had so many arms, though. I think I was a bad girl and fought it once with you all. We might have destroyed him, but the Materia Bunny always returns!"

Cloud whispered to Tifa, "I think she's talking about Materia Keeper."

Tifa nodded and stifled a giggle. Yuffie continued her rambling, but when she stopped talking all of a sudden, everyone turned to see her unconscious. Loren got to her first and felt her pulse. It was steady, but Yuffie showed no signs of waking up any time soon. Loren laughed lightly to herself.

"It's okay. She's only in a temporary sugar-induced coma."

Some looked doubtful. Tifa spoke up.

"Are you sure? She seems kinda…dead."

"You still don't have to worry about that. If she dies, you can just use a Phoenix Down on her."

Everyone gave each other glances and agreed with her logic. Even if she did die, they could just as easily bring her back. The room got silent and a few stared at the screen that they came out of. Barret asked what was on those people's minds.

"How did we get here anyway? And how does this thing work?"

Loren walked over to the frozen Playstation.

"I honestly don't know. I know that I had spilled my coke on the Playstation and that it had frozen up on me. You seem to have come of your own will in anger for the treatment that I had been giving you. Speaking of which…have I apologized for that yet? If I haven't, I am truly sorry for treating you the way I did. But back to the how does it work question, I only know how to play it. If you want to go back, I have no idea how you're going to do it. Why don't you try to touch the screen?"

Cloud stepped forward and slowly sent his fingers toward the screen. Everyone held their breath. His fingers were only a few inches away now…3…2…1…#POKE#. His fingers touched the glass screen, but they didn't go through. Loren heard many breaths being loosed. Tifa slammed her fist into her other fist.

"Damn, we're never going to get out of here, are we!"

Loren didn't voice her thoughts, but her mind understood Tifa's words in the wrong way.

"Don't get your hopes down. It could be like a periodic portal. At times, it could be on, and at times it could be off. Just don't give up on going home."

Vincent studied the tone of Loren's voice. It sounded sad, as if saying what she did was against her own wishes. He understood her. He didn't want to leave quite yet. He still had to know more about her.

"We still have plenty of time. Why don't we get out of my apartment and stretch our legs and have a little sun? I'm off for the next week because there's going to be no one at the office. All of the doctors will be gone on training or something like that, so come on, let's go outdoors. I know you all probably need a break from all the fighting right?"

A soft groan reached everyone's ears and they saw Yuffie sit up, rubbing her head. Tifa was immediately by her side.

"Hey, Yuf. Are you okay?"

"Oi."

"You wanna come with us? We're gonna go walking."

"Oo." (she is saying oooo, not making a face.)

"Okay. Do I take that as a yes, or a no? Come on, Yuf. We're gonna go buy stuff. They might have materia in this world."

Yuffie brightened considerably.

"Oo oi!"

Laughing, Tifa helped Yuffie up while everyone began walking outside. Loren grabbed her keys on the way out, thanking any deity that heard that she lived near a mall. She turned off the lights and locked the door.

Vincent continued to study her movements. She had wanted everyone to get out of her apartment. She was acting a little too peppy. Was it because of something, or was he having that much of an impact on her? Either way, he didn't really care. He wanted to continue observing her and learning of her.

Loren turned around after locking the door and found Vincent waiting for her. Her heart skipped a bit, but she continued to walk. Everyone was waiting in the bottom floor. Cloud looked at everyone, then at Loren.

"Don't you think people will find it strange that freaky-looking people are walking around in a huge group?"

Loren shrugged.

"If people stare at you, ignore it. Even though I hardly show it, I consider you guys my friends and my friends shouldn't give a damn what other people think of what they look like."

Yuffie squealed with glee and jumped on Loren.

"Yay! You can be like my sister or something! We'll go hunt for materia together and drink lots and lots of coffee!"

Loren smiled and she let out what she hadn't done in years. She laughed. She laughed and gave Yuffie a noogie and taunted her, daring her to chase her around. Yuffie took up the challenge and ran around the lobby, chasing her new-found sister. Vincent smiled to himself.

"She's changed so much in the past few days," Vincent muttered under his breath, "how interesting. It's strange how much me and everyone else can change her. Especially me.That makes me feel good inside…but why, when I think about it, do I actually feel so bad?"

"Hey Vince! What'cha doin'? What were 'ya sayin'?"

Yuffie was crouched on the floor and was staring up at Vincent's face. He gave a small grin.

"I was just voicing my thoughts. Thank you for asking."

Everyone was relaxed and they left together to explore this new world. Had they remained in Loren's apartment, they would have caught the Playstation emitting electricity and the TV screen rippling. Had they been at her apartment, they would have seen a black-gloved hand grip the edge of the screen.

* * *

A/N: dun-dun-duun! Hey thanks for the reviews! My, I love you all for being so generous and kind. Bluedranzer, you may kill Sephy as much as you like, but be sure to resurrect him. I need him for my fic now that he decided to join. Be sure to tell me how much you kill him, though. He can only be killed 1,000,000,000,000 times before dying forever. Crazycari, I know that they didn't seem to care, but that was because they came of their own free will and knew what they were doing. I bet they've been to several other fanfic worlds anyway. OceanSoul, I don't know what you meant by Tifa acting like Aeris, but I'll have to figure that out, huh? Thanks so much for reviewing, you guys. I hope you all review once again, or I'll throw materia loaded muffins at Yuffie and make her go insane and wreak havoc everywhere!Coffee rocks, man. Oo oi! 


	6. Chapter 6

Yuffie eagerly scanned the stores for materia shops, but to no avail. She still didn't give up on her search, though. Loren shook her head and stifled a laugh. _'She's hopeless!' _Loren stated to herself. Tifa was scanning the place for clothes shops and whenever she found one, she would go inside and browse, and inevitably come out empty-handed. Everyone met at the food court and stopped to express their troubles. Cloud, of course, was the first to speak his mind.

"Uh, Loren, how are we supposed to buy anything if all we have is gil?"

Loren held her head in her chin in thought.

"Let me see a gil if you please."

Cloud handed her a piece of the strange money. Loren studied it in her hands. It was gold in color and felt like it too. She bit it and found that it was soft like gold. She nodded and handed it back.

"It's not pyrite, so it seems that you can go cash a bit of it in and get a few hundred or thousand dollars."

She received several blank stares. She sighed.

"Fool's gold."

Cid snorted and grabbed a cig from the pack he kept in his sleeve.

"Genius."

"Well, I'm not exactly a plane expert like you, but I do have my intelligences, Cid."

Cid's cheeks were tinged a light pink, but he shrugged it off and waved her away.

"Planes and space are my life so what do you expect me to be, a gardener or rock specialist?"

Loren shrugged and gave him a sincere smile. She paused for a minute and thought.

"Hmm…I've been saving money for quite some time for something special, but I think I have some extra to blow. I'll give you all that money and you can spend it on anything you like. BUT…"

Everyone's eyebrows raised a little.

"Don't spend it on anything that won't serve any purpose back in your world or even in this world. I wouldn't like my money to be wasted."

Red XIII nodded his consent.

"I approve of your rules, even though I can't use your money."

Loren smiled.

"Thank you, Red."

Loren fished out a wallet from her pocket and handed a couple of fifties to everyone. Everyone gave her a quizzical look, Barret especially.

"Loren, why you givin' us paper?"

"This is my world's form of money. Take it or leave it. The money I have given you is like 50 gil per paper. Things aren't all that expensive here, so you can get a bit more than you can normally get in your world."

"Loren, if what you say is true, you have a lot of money considering you gave us all 2 '50' papers," Tifa concluded.

Loren laughed awkwardly.

"Yes, I suppose you're right. It's all for something I have to do. Oh! Speaking of which..."

She looked at the clock and gasped lightly.

"I have to go do something. I'll be right back okay?"

Vincent quirked an eyebrow.

"What do you have to do that's so important?"

"Nothing that you need to worry about. Just…I'm going to go now and _don't follow me_!"

She took off and left the band of heroes full of questions. Yuffie scratched her head.

"I wonder what that was all about. Do you think Sister is doing something bad? I don't think she is. Do you think she's doing something bad Vinnie?"

"I don't know, Yuffie. I plan to find out though."

Vincent straightened his cloak and made sure his gun was hidden from sight.

"Everyone meet back here in half an hour, alright?"

Cloud was taken slightly aback.

"Vince, I've never heard you give out orders before. I suppose we should follow his order though. It makes sense to meet here to check if everyone is okay."

Vincent took off after Loren. Yuffie was tempted to follow him, but decided to stay with Tifa to check if any materia shops popped up.

Vincent saw her rounding a corner and sped up to keep her in sight. Once he rounded the corner, she was gone. He looked at the closest store and saw her in there walking to the register. He sneaked in after her and walked along the wall of the store. He hid behind a shelf and overheard her conversation. He couldn't see her, but hearing her would have to suffice.

"Is it ready?"

"Yes, ma'am. It just got in today. Do you like it?"

"Wow," she breathed, "it has got to have at least 200 years of age on only six inches! Let me check it please."

She sounded like her old self. Vincent thought, _'what could she be buying?'_

"Is the back flamed?"

"Yes, ma'am. It is flamed to the highest extent which grants the highest of quality."

"The pegs are smooth to turn?"

Vincent was getting confused now.

"Yes, the pegs are made of mahogany and can be turned very easily."

"Is the bridge aged to a good degree?"

"Yes ma'am. It has had over a decade of aging."

"May I see the bow?"

"Surely."

Vincent heard something turning and something being moved.

"Octagonal stick, pearl eye, silver binding, leather padding, ebony frog, lightweight, and balanced. Do you like it?"

"Yes, I love it. Thank you. Here is the money required to pay for it."

"Thank you, Loren. Come again soon."

"Goodbye, Frank."

Vincent heard Loren's footsteps going down the store back to the exit. He silently followed her and before he had gotten twenty feet, she stopped. He then noticed that she was carrying a case of some sort in her hands.

"I thought I told you not to follow me, Vincent."

"You were acting suspicious. You know I couldn't just leave you at that."

Loren smiled.

"You're right. I'm sorry for worrying you."

Vincent shook his head.

"Don't apologize. But why were you acting so formal with that man?"

"Because that's the way I am when I'm doing business."

"I see….Loren…just out of curiosity, what's in the case?"

Loren shifted her feet.

"You don't have to know that."

"Yes I do, Loren. Tell me…what's in the case?"

"I thought it was just out of curiosity."

"Well, I have to know now."

"Come with me."

Vincent followed her back to the food court. No one had returned at that time, so she sat at an empty table and placed the case on the table. She turned it towards her and slowly opened it. She looked at him slowly. Vincent looked at her expectantly.

"Show me, Loren."

She turned the case towards Vincent and he nearly choked on himself. In front of him was the most beautiful violin he had ever seen. It was deep cherry in color and had her initials carved into the bottom.

"My god…it's so beautiful, Loren. Why would you want to hide this?"

Loren hung her head.

"Nobody really likes violin and it's my most prized possession. I had it custom-made by a renowned violin maker and had it personalized. This is what I've been saving so much money for, Vincent. This violin is my secret life. It's my refuge from the world."

"I see. You shouldn't have to hide this, though. You should be proud that you can play this. I, for one, love the fact that you can play such a complicated instrument."

Loren turned a dark shade of pink and smiled.

"Thanks, Vincent. That makes me feel good about myself."

Vincent turned it back to her and smiled.

"Can you do me a favor?"

"Yes, Vincent?"

"Can you play a song for me? I want to hear the sound of a violin again. I haven't heard one in just about over thirty years."

Loren turned an even darker shade. She shook her head wildly.

"No, I couldn't possibly do that! There're so many people around. I would only embarrass myself!"

"No you won't. Just play something for me. Anything. Don't be afraid of an audience. If they judge you," Vincent accentuated his final words, "_you shouldn't give a damn what they think._"

"Heh, using my own words against me. I figured one of you would do it at least once."

Loren took the violin, the shoulder rest, and the bow out of the case and fit everything together. Vincent turned the case away from the two of them and out towards the 'audience'. She nervously placed the violin on her shoulders and the bow on the violin. She took a deep breath and began to play. The first few notes were wavy and hesitant, but she eventually fell into a type of trance and began to play smoothly and loudly. Onlookers began to flock to her and fell under her spell. They were swaying with the music, loving every second of it. People began putting money in her violin case and many more were coming to her. The notes were long and soothing; enchanting was the song that she played. A few of the spectators were some of the heroes and they were in shock listening to her marvelous playing. All of a sudden, the noise level of her music dipped extremely low. People edged in to hear what she was playing, but soon stepped back as she soared to a crescendo and awed people with the intensity of the music. And, just as quickly as people had arrived, it was over. Dozens of spectators applauded and cheered for her playing and threw money into her case. Loren was a deep scarlet color with all of the cheering. Vincent gave her a broad smile.

"Loren, I never knew you could play so well!"

Loren laughed at him.

"You never knew I could play in the first place!"

Vincent stood and took Loren in a huge hug. She seemed shocked at first, but quickly warmed up to it and returned it. The heroes that were in the crowd cheered. Vincent's inner conscience fought with him, but he won. _'But what about Lucrecia…?' 'The hell with Lucrecia! This is now, and I am in love with Loren!' _He felt lighter on the inside, happier, in a way. He released her and allowed her to put away her violin. She gathered up the money and counted it. She nearly gasped.

"Wow! I got 150 dollars just playing my violin! I could make a career out of this!"

Yuffie bounded up to Loren and gave her a bear hug.

"Oh gawd, that was just beautiful! How did you learn to play so well?"

"I took private lessons when I was really young then took more when I got my job."

Tifa had been with Yuffie, so she also went up to Loren and complimented her. Loren was getting ready to cry. Never had she received this much praise before from one act. She tried sucking up the tears and smiled. She ended up crying anyway. Vincent was by her side instantly.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes. I'm just so happy, though."

Vincent smiled and put a hand on her shoulder. Loren reached up and grabbed it in thanks. Vincent's heartbeat accelerated to the point of nearly bursting out of his chest.

"Thank you Vincent, for making me play. I never would've felt this happiness had you not been here."

After a few minutes, everyone was together again. Loren grabbed her violin case and stood.

"All right, you all. Are you ready to go?"

Everyone nodded.

"Oh wait! What did you all buy?"

Everyone brought their bags forward. Tifa had clothes, Yuffie had a good luck charm, Cloud brought forth several cookie bags and a soda, Barret had polish for guns, Cid had cigarettes, Cait Sith had a new pair of large green dice, and someone stupidly smuggled Red XIII cat nip. He had been thoroughly aggravated by this and had threatened to bite that person's innards out. Either way, he kept it tucked behind his ear. Loren okayed everyone's items and began to lead them out the door when thunder stopped them. Yuffie squealed in fright and grabbed Loren's arm.

"I'm afraid of thunderstorms! Let's get to your apartment quickly!"

"Come on, we haven't got much time before the rain starts hitting hard. We've got to get to my apartment as soon as possible which means running as fast as your feet can carry you!"

Everyone nodded and began to run once they got outside. It was already coming softly, so they didn't have much time left. Once they got to the apartment building, they quickly ran inside. They were lucky because once they got inside, it began raining extremely hard.

"Whoa," Cloud breathed, "we would have been caught in that if we had taken longer? Geez, that's pretty bad!"

Loren agreed and she ran upstairs to unlock the door. She heard the telltale click and she opened the door. What she saw though, was enough to stop her dead in her tracks. She held on tightly to the door due to what was in front of her and did the only thing a terrified woman would do in that kind of situation. She screamed.

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A/N: Eek! What did Loren see? I bet you know already. Yayness, I love you all for being so nice to me and my chaotic brain. Oh, and before you ask, Red XIII was allowed inside because that mall allows animals. And everyone except Vinnie had left their weapons at home, sorry for forgetting to put that in. Hey, did you like it that Loren is a violin player? I just had to put that in there! Please review or all of Cloud's and everyone's weapons will shatter into a bazilliontrillionfillion pieces. Err…sorry about that. I'm just excited about nothing whatsoever. Please review pweeaaze? Ciao! 


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Hey you guys! Thanks and I hope you enjoy the entry of the new character. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own nothin'. Haven't said that in a while. I only own Loren and the supposed plot of this fic. Don't sue, please! Thank you!

* * *

_She heard the telltale click and she opened the door. What she saw though, was enough to stop her dead in her tracks. She held on tightly to the door due to what was in front of her and did the only thing a terrified woman would do in that kind of situation. She screamed._

Vincent heard Loren's scream from up above and almost immediately bolted up the stairs. He heard a door slam and all was quiet once more. His fear grew with every passing stride when he heard no commotion from above. He heard everyone coming up behind him, so he boosted his courage and nearly leaped up the last few steps. He heard a few shouts coming from Loren's room and he quickly drew his gun. He knocked, actually nearly banged on the door, demanding entrance. He heard a small gasp come from inside as a steely noise met his ears. He readied Death Penalty and unfortunately no one else could ready their weapons for their weapons were inside the apartment. He heard quickly approaching steps and jumped far back as a very long sword rammed its way through the door. He visibly paled more than he already was.

"Sephiroth…"

Loren saw him stand and with unnatural speed dragged her inside and closed the door behind her. He threw her on the couch and glared at her. His cold eyes were glinting evilly.

"Are you their new friend, traitor?"

"Yeah, so what if I am?"

"Hmm, you have a lot of nerve to be talking to me in such a manner. I should strike you for doing so, but I have a rather good temper today. Do not do that again, though. You seem to be the easiest to manipulate and seem to be the new one in the group. That is why I have chosen you as my new puppet."

"You're a sick bastard. In any case, I am not their newest member. I'm their oldest. Oh, and believe you me, I am not that easy to manipulate."

A thin silver eyebrow arched.

"You are their oldest member?"

A wispy, dangerous smile showed on Loren's face.

"Yeah…I've been pulling the strings all along. I've led them through all of their actions…I've led them to you. I am their true leader. Cloud is just 'leader' because he is in his world and I'm not. I control even him."

A smirk of his own formed on his face.

"Do you now…?"

Loren's face contorted in anger. She shouted at him.

"Don't even think of trying to use me to get Cloud! He may be your worst enemy, but I could be ten times as bad. Leave Cloud and the others alone, understand?"

Sephiroth towered over her.

"I thought I told you not to talk to me in such a manner!"

He raised a black-gloved hand and prepared to strike. She simply stiffened her body and glared at him. She didn't seem afraid at all at the strike. He brought his hand down and knocked her to the floor with the force of the slap. Her head whipped up and she made a noise resembling a hiss. Gray eyes met sea-green and both had anger pouring out of them. A loud banging took both from their glaring contest.

"Loren! Let me in now!"

Sephiroth drew Masamune from his side and sneered. Loren gasped and grabbed his leg, but he kicked her in the head with his other foot and seemed to knock her out cold. He began running toward the door, sword pointed toward the intruder on the other side. He rammed the dai-katana through the door, expecting steel to meet flesh in a satisfying sound of spurting blood, but heard nothing except splintering wood. He began to bring his sword out but quickly dropped to the ground and then to the side to avoid bullets that were being shot through the door. The shooter seemed to have obviously good hearing considering the bullets had followed his positions. He darted back to the door and easily pulled the sword out. He looked one last time at Loren in mild anger, disgust, and malice before jumping back in the screen, the only evidence of him being there being Loren's unconscious body.

The door burst open, Vincent striding purposefully inside to see Loren's body lying still on the floor. Was she dead? No, that was impossible. She had the will of a rhino. Vincent felt her throat for a pulse, and indeed it was there, albeit fluttery and fast. He picked her up and laid her on the couch, making sure that she was comfortable. A few hours passed, with no change in condition except maybe a twitch in the hand. The landlord came up later, asking what in the Nine Hells had gone on here, but Vincent sent him away to come back later. About two hours later, Loren stirred. The group stood around her as she awoke.

"What…where am I?"

"You're at your home."

Tifa grabbed her hand.

"We're so sorry we got you into this."

"You never got me into anything. I got myself into this by buying the game and spilling a coke on it, screwing it up and allowing you all access to my world."

"Ah," Cloud contradicted, "but what made you buy the game?"

Loren opened her mouth to speak, but no sound came out. Her face screwed up in concentration.

"I read about the game on the Internet and it drew me in because critics made it sound appealing."

"Why did critics make it sound appealing? What drew _them_ in?"

Yuffie was on good standing with her point, but Loren's thinking speed had increased.

"The creators of the game. If you all are appealing, the creators are at fault, not you all."

No one could give a rebuttal this time. Loren was now on a roll.

"If it's anyone's fault, it's theirs because they got you all from ideas in their imagination."

Cloud began to take her comments wrongly and glared at her.

"So we're just creations, huh? We're all just mindless little creatures like Sephiroth. Is that what you're saying?"

Loren was stunned.

"Cloud, I didn't say that. I guess you can say they are just like God, just not on such a high level."

Cloud's breathing quickened.

"So you're saying we should worship them? We don't even know who the hell they are and you're telling us to worship them like they're God? Like Sephiroth wants us to do!"

Loren's brows furrowed in slight anger and hurt.

"Cloud--,"

"Stop!" Tifa finished. Cloud was slightly surprised at her, but quickly recovered.

"Tifa don't you hear what she's saying? She's telling us that we're simple creations and that we must worship some unknown bastards that are our 'creators'!"

Before Loren could open her mouth, Tifa spoke.

"Cloud, what if that wasn't what she was saying at all? What if she was just telling us that they are a very minor form of God because we were their mind's creations? We _are_ supposed to be a bunch of pixels, squares, triangles, and whatnot you know."

"What if she wasn't saying that? What if she was actually insulting us, huh Tifa? What if you are just insulting us for not being real and being the results of someone's twisted minds? Tell me, Loren. Is that what you were saying? Answer me!"

He raised his fist in anger, and again Loren simply stiffened, expecting the blow to knock her out once again to come. It never came though, when he was lifted off the floor and rammed against the wall. Vincent's eyes were flaring in anger as he kept Cloud pinned against the wall.

"What if she really wasn't saying what you believe? Think for once, Strife! Maybe you just misunderstood her words. Learn to think outside of that tiny spiked box that is your head."

Cloud closed his eyes and nodded.

"I…I understand. I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. I just got really mad because I thought she was insulting us."

Vincent gave a curt nod and willed the demons in him begging to come out to calm down. He looked intently into the blonde's eyes again as he spoke.

"Oh, and if you so much as raise a hand at her again, I will break your arm and will threaten to let my demons out on you. I know you are my friend, but be careful who you touch or I will be very much upset. You are a great person, but sometimes you can be such an—,"

"Ass." Loren finished.

Cloud smiled and Vincent let him go. Cloud walked over to Tifa and bowed his head.

"Tifa…I'm sorry for getting mad at you for not siding with me. Will you forgive me?"

Tifa gave him a warm smile and leaned towards his ear.

"Hey, I'm your girlfriend, how could I not forgive you?"

Cloud smiled and nodded.

"Thank you, Tifa."

Loren and Vincent having exceptional hearing heard this and smiled at each other. Loren quickly turned away, though, leaving Vincent to smile to himself. She was so funny sometimes.

Loren felt a strange tug at her brain and grimaced. Sephiroth…Loren quickly excused herself and almost ran to the balcony. She felt nauseous, tired, and felt something resembling insanity nagging at her. A smile unlike her own twitched its way to her mouth and she could no longer control her limbs. _'This can't be happening! I told him that I wasn't that easy to manipulate and here I am, giving in already! I will not give up so easily, I swear it!'_ she screamed inwardly. She put up the strongest mental barriers she could, but they were showing that they were ineffective. She began to feel dizzy as she stumbled back inside. Vincent gave her a worried look as her head dipped and she came to a standstill.

"…Loren…?"

Loren's body shook a bit and she put a hand up to her face, as if she was trying to hit herself or stop something. The shaking began to increase in strength and Cloud realized what was happening.

"It's Sephiroth! He's trying to get control of her. I'm very surprised, though. I've never been able to last that long…"

"You idiot, Strife! You're talking about it as if it's a normal thing! We have to help her damn it!"

Vincent grabbed Loren's shoulders and shook her softly.

"Come on, you can win against him. Please make it, Loren."

The shaking stopped and the hand slowly fell to its side.

"…V…Vincent?"

"Yes, yes it's me. Are you alright?"

Her hand came up and latched itself to his arm.

"I will become one with the planet, Vincent. None of you can stop me from becoming a god and ruling with Mother."

The hand squeezed with a sudden strength and Vincent winced in pain. Everyone gasped or began to shout as Loren raised her head and showed brightly glowing red eyes. She threw Vincent back into the group and smiled wickedly. She backed toward the TV and placed a slender hand on the screen, which rippled.

"Come now…catch me if you can. If you cannot keep up with me, I will dispose of her body in the bloodiest of fashions. We would not want that, now would we Vincent?"

"You bastard…I should have disposed of you before you were even born!"

"Such harsh words, Vincent. You will have to be punished by me giving her a cut or two…or maybe…no, I would not want to dirty myself with her body…I would never breed with filth like her, even if it was for her torture. I will keep it at slow, deep slices with Masamune. Do you like how that sounds?"

Vincent and several others were shaking in anger, ready to follow him wherever he went.

"Come on…come to me…"

Sephiroth in Loren's body jumped through the screen, laughing the whole way. Vincent, weapon in hand, leapt in right after him as did everyone else after they retrieved their weapons. Vincent felt a strong pull and suddenly he was in a forest. Red XIII took the lead, his instincts and senses guiding him. Everyone followed close behind, not wanting to lose their newest comrade. They heard long, drawn out screams coming from their left, and they immediately switched directions, Vincent now taking the lead. The trees rustled a distance from them and they paused momentarily to see what the noise was before continuing forward. The scream sounded again, but from their right. Cloud stopped, confused.

"What the hell…? I thought we were heading in the direction of the scream, but it changed direction."

Red caught on quickly and stated his thoughts.

"Sephiroth is playing very painful tricks on us. Do you know what caused that rustling?"

Cait Sith raised his arms in defeat.

"I don't know. It could've been a bird or something."

Red shook his head.

"Or it could've been Loren flying through the air, Sephiroth carrying her through the trees."

"He wouldn't do such a horrible…oh, wait, this is Sephiroth we're talking about here. Nevermind."

Yuffie placed her hands on her hips in annoyance.

"Actually, we're pretty lucky considering he didn't launch her through the air like a rag doll and let her fall to the ground, breaking a few bones in the process.", Cloud stated, but was interrupted by a cruel laughter resonating throughout the trees.

"That does not seem like such a bad idea, but I will hold it off until later."

Barret slapped his gun arm onto his fist in anger.

"Damn that bastard Sephiroth is gettin' more ideas thanks to your loud mouth, Strife!"

Cloud gave a sheepish smile and shrugged innocently. A third scream was heard, but was accompanied by a grunt of pain, a yell, and a slapping sound that could be heard throughout the entire forest. Vincent quickened his step, hoping to catch Sephiroth unawares, but was himself caught as a huge form was thrown into him, knocking both him and it to the floor. When he pushed himself up, he realized that the form was Loren.

He scrambled over to her and picked her up. Sephiroth's voice was heard as Vincent tried to wake her up.

"Take her, she is more trouble than she is worth. I can get you all any way I can with less trouble."

And then he was gone.

Cloud, Tifa, Vincent and Yuffie among others crowded around her, hoping against hope that Loren wasn't dead. She had several cuts along her torso, blood pouring out her wounds, and she was extremely pale, her breaths coming softly and shallow. Yuffie fell to her knees and asked Vincent if she could hold her. Tears were in her eyes as she spoke.

"Loren…please…I may seem like an immature sixteen-year-old, but I do have a good side…Come on…you are so important to me even though I haven't known you all that long. You're like a big sister to me and I can't lose that, not now that I've experienced what it was like to have a kind, young family member. Please…I'll give you lots and lots of coffee and we'll go hunting for materia together, okay? Just please wake up!"

Yuffie quickly stood and ran to a nearby tree to cry by herself. Cloud knelt by Loren and smiled softly at her.

"Loren...I want to thank you for sticking up for me when we first got here. I'm sorry I got so mad at you. Please don't die on us, okay? Now that you're with us, we need you to be here all the time, or we'll be lost. Come back…"

He stood and turned around to hide the glassy eyes that he had gotten. Tifa got on one knee and grabbed Loren's hand.

"I want to thank you as well for talking to me that one night. I was so set on leaving the group until you spoke to me. Now I'm glad that you convinced me otherwise or I wouldn't be with…you know…I'm sorry I called you such a horrible name and hit you. I want you back as well and want you to help us fight to the end. Make sure you come back, okay?"

Tifa completely sat down and buried her face in her hands. Barret stepped forward and looked down at her.

"Eh…I really don't have much to say 'cept thanks for bein' with us even though you never wanted to in the first place. And I must say you've got one of the most fiery spirits I've ever seen. I never seen a girl that just jumps on Cloud and starts beatin' him up without being a fighter all their lives and stands up to a freaky group of people that came out of her TV without faintin'. Get out of that stupid-ass sleep of yours and wake up already!"

He stomped off and Red was up next. He padded his way up to her and bowed his head.

"I suppose I misjudged you for being a foolish little girl who cried and had mood swings. I have seen you for the person you really are and I really like you. Wake up soon."

He placed a paw on her arm and lay by her. Cid scratched his head as he awkwardly walked up to her.

"Hey, uh, sorry for being an ass to you and I promise on my rocket's grave that I'll not smoke in yer damn apartment again. Come back to us and I'll have Shera make you some tea."

He scratched his head again and looked down at Red.

"Was that okay?"

Red nodded and Cid sighed in relief. Cait Sith bounced up to Loren.

"Umm…Come back to us, okay? I'll tell your fortune if ya come back."

He bounded away once again and left Red and Vincent with her. Vincent wanted the words to come out of his mouth, but he was having difficulty. He finally managed to speak through the lump in his throat.

"Loren…you've become so important to me. I never thought I would feel so…exhilarated again. Ever since Lucretia's death…I felt as if love was nothing but a dream. You've made that dream a reality, though. I can feel it pounding within my very soul, telling me to be with you and protect you with my life. I thought you hated me, I really did, that is until you told me about your past. Please come back to us, to me. I don't know if I would make it through a second death of my most precious loved one. I've realized now that you can give me back my life by my being with you. You can complete me. Please…don't leave me…please…"

He clutched her to his chest and almost felt the tears coming when he felt a slight shudder coming from beneath him. He held her away from him and studied her face for any signs of awakening. He nearly cried out in joy when he heard her voice, albeit soft.

"Get…away…Seph...i...roth…"

He stroked her face softly, trying not to scream in happiness.

"It's okay…I'm not Sephiroth…it's me…Vincent."

"Vin…cent…?"

"Yes it's me…don't worry…you're safe now…"

"Voices…calling me…wanting me…to come back…was it…you all?"

The latest conversation and a soft voice had called everyone's attention. The females were brimming with tears and Cloud was trying hard not to start laughing with joy. Everyone else was simply smiling.

"Yes, it was us. You know we couldn't leave you, right?"

Loren smiled softly and coughed a little.

"Yeah, I know you all are so stubborn like that."

Vincent had to smile at that.

"Yes…relax now and I'll give you an X-Potion so you can feel better, okay?"

Her muscles relaxed slightly but quickly bunched up. She hissed in pain and tried to get out of Vincent's arms. He held her in place and placed a calming hand on her shoulder.

"Okay, okay, don't panic now. Just hold yourself stiff enough so that you don't feel as much pain and ignore the bitter taste that is about to enter your mouth."

Loren complied as much as she could and reflexively coughed when the potion went down her throat. The wounds on her stomach and chest healed and her muscles relaxed greatly. She breathed easier and managed to smile.

"Thanks you guys. I somehow heard you all talking to me and you honestly didn't have to thank me so much. I haven't done all that much for you."

"Well, we thought you were going to die, so we said what we could." Yuffie sniffled.

Loren smiled and ran a hand through her hair.

"Couldn't you have just given me a Phoenix Down and brought me back to life?"

Most remained silent and some even flushed from realization and embarrassment except for Red XIII.

"I knew that we could, it's just that I didn't know if it would work since you come from another world so I decided to give my condolences anyway."

Tifa looked at the ground and wrung her hands.

"I guess most of us just got caught up with sorrow and panic to be logical."

Loren waved a hand in dismissal.

"Look, I didn't need an explanation. I understand what you were feeling and there's no need to feel embarrassed about it."

She then realized that she was still in Vincent's arms and decided to just go along with it. She was comfortable anyway. She settled herself a little more in his warm hold and surprised him by giving a sigh of contentment that only he could hear.

"Hey Yuffie…?"

Yuffie bounded up happily to her "sister".

"Yup?"

"When can we get that coffee? I'm in the mood for something warm and refreshing."

"Whenever I can find it, sis! It'll be the first thing I mug from the nearest house!"

"Yuffie…don't go stealing coffee from some random person. It could mean the end of their lives and possibly ours as well when the owner of the coffee goes berserk and tries to kill us all."

Yuffie huffed and gave a mock pout.

"Oh, all right! I'll go buy some as soon as I get the chance."

"That's my girl."

Yuffie smiled and threw herself on Loren, ergo knocking all three to the floor. Vincent was silently pleading for air as Yuffie hugged and squeezed Loren, making her laugh, only knocking more air out of Vincent. He poked his claw hand into Yuffie's side, causing her to yelp and leap off of Loren. Vincent took in large gulps of air and laughed softly afterwards. What shocked Vincent right afterwards was that Loren crawled back into his arms and situated herself comfortably there. He gave her a questioning look. She shrugged and smiled.

"What? Your arms are extremely comfortable."

Vincent shook his head, not really caring. Cloud gazed down at the two and beamed.

"Alright. Let's say we relax tonight and then take off tomorrow?"

Everyone nodded their consent and began to softly talk to each other. Tonight, all troubles would be forgotten and they would enjoy this night before they went after the Silver-Haired-Monster once again. Tonight would be all about them. But…not everything would go according to plan…

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A/N: So tell me, what did ya think? I hope you enjoyed it because I tried making Seph as evil as possible and I'm thinking it worked. I hope. Please review! 


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Sorry! Writer's block and disconnection of the Internet had me stuck for a very long time. Please accept my apologies, read, and review! Advent Children! AAAHHH! Runs and drools over printed paper of Advent Children info.

The night was gorgeous. The stars were brilliantly showing, the moon was full and just about glowing, and the forest was alive with night life. Everyone was happy enjoying their free night. Vincent smiled warmly at Loren before leaving into the depths of the forest to find dinner. Cloud and Tifa were sitting next to each other holding hands. Everyone seemed fairly relaxed and happy. There was only one blemish. Meteor. Yuffie growled in frustration.

"Dang it, why does Meteor have to be in the way of such a beautiful night?"

Loren shrugged.

"I don't know, but it really ruins the great scene. I never thought Meteor to be so ugly in the sky. I only knew it to be a 2-D fireball that never went away, no matter how many days I played."

Yuffie laughed and hugged her 'sister'.

"Yea, Meteor is ugly alright! I just want it to be gone. You'll help us do that, right?"

"Of course I will."

Yuffie gave Loren another hug and bounded off to tease Cloud for having spiky hair and a jumbo sword. Loren looked around the makeshift campsite to see how everyone was. The atmosphere of the place was relaxed and a little joyful. The aura changed though when she looked over at the fire.

Vincent stood next to the fire, roasting an unknown meat. Loren walked over to him.

"Vin, what are you cooking?"

He gave her an impassive stare and looked back into the fire.

"Food. That's all you need to know."

Loren backed off a few steps and gave him a hurt look.

"Geez, I only wanted to know what you're cooking."

"Why do you need to know? It's food. If you can eat it, it should be alright."

"Why are you acting so badly towards me? What did _I_ do wrong?"

'_Yes, Vincent. What _did _she do wrong?'_

"Shut up."

Loren took a step forward and began to get angry.

"Excuse me?"

'_Come now, Vincent. The lady is asking you a question. You best answer it.'_

"I said shut up!"

Vincent's vision began to blur as he continued to argue with Chaos as he had been doing ever since Sephiroth hurt Loren. Loren got up in his face and clenched her fists, now completely angered and beginning to fume.

'_Ooh, the girl is angry. I think she's going to hit you if you don't answer. If she does, she'll be sorry!'_

"Don't even think about it."

Loren was a good shade of red now.

"You think you can block me? Come on!"

She launched her fist into his face, sending him stumbling to the ground. He got back on his hands and knees, shaking his head. He shook for a minute, trying to fight off Chaos, but it was in vain. He slowly lifted his head, giving an inhuman growl. His crimson eyes glowed brightly as he began to change into Chaos. Loren ran over to Cloud, asking for a spare sword. He handed her the Murasame and asked why she needed it. She didn't answer and ran back over to Vincent, who was now Chaos.

Loren couldn't explain it, but she felt an avid bloodlust running through her veins. She felt if she cut Chaos, she would feel as if she had gotten an enormous amount of power. The Murasame felt suddenly light as she charged the demon. Her speed quickened and, leaping into the air, she brought her sword down on Chaos. Not expecting such a burst of speed, the sword cut into the demon's shoulder, rendering it immobile. It screamed in pain and Loren screamed in delight. She jumped over his shoulder, bringing the sword with her. Before the demon could even begin to recover, Loren quickly dismembered his wings, sending blood gushing to the floor. Loren was drenched in it, and she laughed gleefully as Chaos writhed on the ground. She stepped up to Chaos, sneering as he turned back into Vincent. She pointed the sword at his chest and said sinisterly, "You shouldn't have spoken to him like that, Vincent." And she rammed the sword into his chest. His eyes flew open in pained surprise. He looked at her in stunned silence. He then finally spoke.

"Loren…why…?" And then he was dead.

Everyone stared on in shock. Cloud quickly noticed a familiar green tinge to her eyes before it faded. Cloud's brows furrowed in concern. _'Sephiroth…'_ The sword fell limp in Loren's hands and she fell to her knees. She slowly looked at her hands and began to shriek in fright.

"What is this! Why am I covered in blood! Why…!"

She looked further up and saw Vincent's bloody corpse. She yelled out in shock and quickly crawled over to him.

"What happened! What have I done! Will somebody get a Phoenix Down!"

Red XIII cautiously padded over to Loren, holding a Phoenix Down in his mouth. She quickly snatched it from him and placed it on top of Vincent. When the feather touched him, it quickly caught fire and engulfed him in flames. Loren screamed again and pointed at him.

"What the hell! Why is Vincent on fire when we used a Phoenix Down?"

The question was answered when the flames made the shape of a phoenix before dying out. When the flames were completely gone Vincent breathed once again. All traces of blood on his body were gone, unlike Loren. She proceeded to throw herself on him and begin to cry. Cloud and Barret plucked her off him for fear of her going berserk again. She began to twist and struggle with a passion.

"Let me go, damn it! Why are you keeping me from him?"

Cloud signaled for Barret to let go. He did and Cloud quickly pinned her to the ground with his weight. He leaned close to her and muttered in her ear, "I saw your eyes. Don't think something as obvious as that would slip past me."

She struggled against him.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I don't remember anything past asking you for a sword."

"Nice try…Sephiroth. I know you're in control of her again. Let her go now."

Loren struggled even harder.

"Cloud! Sephiroth is not in me! He had control a while ago back at my apartment but that was it! Just let go!"

"I don't think so. I saw your eyes. You had possession of her. I saw your evil green eyes in her. I'm not stupid."

"I don't…know…what…you're…talking about! So just let…me…GO!"

Cloud gasped as her eyes flashed green again and with sudden strength, she threw him off her. She got up, heaving and gasping. Her eyes had returned to their normal grey hue and she stumbled over to Vincent, not noticing his nakedness. She caressed his raven hair and spoke to him in soothing tones.

"Vincent…come on…I know you're alive…speak to me…just open your eyes and acknowledge that I'm here."

Vincent mumbled something and his eyes slowly opened. When he saw her, he rose immediately from her grasp and backed away. His mind was still a little shaky when he looked at her.

"Eyes…green…died….away…get…away…Loren…away…"

She took a hesitant step towards him.

"Vincent…?"

His eyes widened in fear.

"AWAY…AWAY…AWAY!"

Loren backed away in hurt and felt angry tears burning in the corners of her eyes. She lowered her head and looked at her hands. She shook slightly.

"It wasn't supposed to be this way…it wasn't…"

When she raised her eyes to look at Vincent, they were green again. Everyone backed away in fright.

"IT WAS NOT!"

She turned around and ran off into the forest. Yuffie screamed after her.

"SISTER!"

Cloud held Yuffie back and bade her to escort Vincent to the tent they had set up a while back. Cloud could only wonder where Loren had run off to.

A/N: What'cha think? To all of my older reviewers (you know, the first ones and the ones that have reviewed since last chapter), I love you all and there is never a sufficient amount of times I can apologize. To all of the newer reviewers, well you'd never know that I had been on writer's block unless I told you (like now), so I have no need to apologize to you all. I must say that I hope you have enjoyed it so far and I am hoping that I can continue on a regular basis. Ditto previous sentence for older reviewers as well. Damn you, Sephiroth! grabs pen, frying pan, gun, and uses them all on Seph You twisted my main character around! I'm gonna have to think even more than I have to!

Seph: Isn't that a good thing, though? OW!

ES: No! I don't want to think more than necessary so I have to end your life now! BANG HAHAHAHAHAHA! STAB STAB STAB STAB WHACK Oops…overkill. Phoenix Down!

Seph: That's it. You have pushed me too far! RAAAAGGGHHHH!

ES: Eep! Safer Sephiroth!

SS: SUPERNOVA!

ES: AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH! OKAY, WHILE I RUN, PLEASE REVIEW! OOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWW!

SS: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Yayness, two in a row! I'm on a roll! Please review this one too…after you read it, of course. Moos go 'cow'! Yes, I'm weird. What's your point?

Loren ran blindly through the forest, not wanting to stop ever. She wanted to be as far away from the campsite as possible. After running for who knows how long, she finally realized that she was out of the forest and near an ocean. It was still night time, but she wanted to be away from the place. Seeing a bright greenish glow in the middle of the forest, she remembered that she was near Mideel. A ridge was in her way of getting to the ocean, but she slid her way down anyway. After running a good distance, she finally made it. She ran to the edge of the water. It was dark, but the moon and Meteor were enough light sources for her to see the next island. It was about a good hundred yards away, but she steeled herself and prepared to swim. She promptly jumped in and began to swim her way over there. The water was cold, but she ignored it.

After what felt like hours, she finally made it. She clambered on shore and shivered. She shook the coldness off and kept running. She got to another shore and had to swim again. She finally realized that she was on a chain of islands. She went from island to island, barely starting to feel fatigue at the last island before she hit the mainland. She jumped in and swam until she finally reached the mainland. She collapsed on the land and lay there for a few minutes. She then willed herself to get up and continue walking. She could mentally picture the map and knew that Gongaga was only a while away. She walked this time over to the rundown town and barely made it before collapsing for good.

Loren woke up in a small room and groaned. Her body was sore everywhere and she didn't dare move. She studied her surroundings. She concluded that she must be in Gongaga, considering the structure of the houses. She also noted that her clothes had been switched and she now wore clean clothes while her blood soaked ones were hanging on a chair nearby. An elderly couple stepped through the door and thanked the planet that she was alive. The old woman spoke first.

"My dear, are you all right? We found you just outside of town, unconscious and covered in blood. What in the name of Lifestream have you been through?"

Loren sighed.

"I don't remember."

Loren grimaced to herself. She really did remember, but she didn't want to go into detail, lest she be thrown out.

The old man stepped forward and Loren noticed that the man had very familiar blue eyes. She quickly studied her surroundings again.

"This house…it _is_…"

She had muttered this so only she could hear.

"Young lady, are you sure you don't remember anything? You seem very troubled."

"Are the parents of Zack? As in the Zack that joined SOLDIER, became First Class, and fought alongside Sephiroth?"

Both of the elderly people froze. The old woman clutched her heart.

"Do you know our Zack?"

"Know him? I practically fought alongside him!"

Both parents stepped forward now and sat next to her.

"Really? Oh, do tell us how he's been doing!"

Loren lowered her head. Fear was instilled in the parents.

"What? Tell us what has happened."

"He…he is dead."

The old woman clutched her heart even tighter. The old man shook his head.

"He was going to go to Midgar and become a mercenary along with one of his comrades named Cl…" she choked on his name, "Cloud. Shinra soldiers tracked them down. Zack was gunned down. They did not bother to touch Cloud because he appeared to already be half-dead. They left and Cloud crawled over to Zack. He took his sword and crawled to the edge of the cliff. He raised his arms and yelled. They had been so close. Just beyond that cliff was Midgar."

The parents were on the verge of tears.

"I could not do anything because I had no control over my limbs. They had all been shot, rendering me immobile. I am very sorry."

She didn't like making up stories, but she couldn't exactly tell them that she had seen this through a television in another world. Loren stood and proceeded to the door.

"Please excuse me, but I must be going. Thank you for your hospitality."

She turned to leave but the parents stopped her. They put a heavy bag in her hands. The old woman smiled faintly.

"Here, take this. This was meant for our Zack when he returned home, but since he isn't, we'd like you to have it instead. Thank you for telling us about Zack."

Loren held the bag in her hands and looked at the parents. The old man nodded.

"We also noticed that you didn't have any money, so we figured that you needed it more than us."

Loren nodded numbly.

"Thank you. Goodbye."

Loren left the house and soon left the town after buying a weapon and a couple materia. She bought the Hardedge and bought the Heal and Time materia. She was completely ready to wander aimlessly through the continent. She began to think about what Cloud had said.

'_I saw your eyes…I saw your evil green eyes in her…Sephiroth…get out of her…'_

She finally made a conclusion that Sephiroth didn't control her; a part of him was in her. She then took it upon herself to find out how to call upon and control that little part and use it to her advantage. Either way, the group wouldn't want her back. That brought her down into a dismal mood. She created a fire and spent most of the night reshaping the Hardedge to her liking. She had an extremely hard time doing this because she didn't have anything to shape the metal. She quickly solved this by quickly running back to Gongaga, grabbing a thick piece of metal and taking it back to pound on the sword. She gained much strength by doing this and had the sword that she desired. The sword was not as broad as the Hardedge and a lot sharper. The blade was oddly shaped because a smaller blade grew out of the top and the bottom of the blade was like a hook.

Loren wandered for weeks, fighting monsters, always training some part of her body. She spent a lot of her time while fighting trying to release that part of Sephiroth that was inside her and use it. The first several times worked, but she would black out and be covered in blood again. The next many tries kept getting better and better until she could control it completely. She could now control that part and prove a challenge to even Sephiroth, which was ironic because she would be using his own power against him.

She was traveling to a town when she felt a presence coming from behind. With her hand on the sword she decided to call Fiend's Lament, she continued walking until the presence was right behind her. At that time, she drew her sword faster than the eye could blink and slashed at the opponent behind her. The presence was suddenly in the air, so she jumped up after it. She looked up and saw that her opponent was the fiend of fiends; Sephiroth. Her anger doubled and her sword called for blood. She slashed up at him and, his sword already drawn, he parried and dashed back down at her. Loren easily avoided his barreling charge and landed balanced on the ground. She quickly rushed Sephiroth again and they fell into a dance of attacking, parrying, dodging, and maneuvering. This lasted for a while until their swords hit each other so hard that they flew apart. Loren quickly steadied herself and got ready for another attack. Sephiroth paused and studied her. He smiled evilly.

"So it is you. You are supposed to be with the rest of your merry band of adventurers, are you not?"

Loren smiled grimly.

"No."

"Oh? And why not?"

"Exile."

"Exile? Well, that is certainly interesting."

"I exiled myself."

"Why?"

"I killed Vincent."

Sephiroth's eyebrow arched.

"Did you now?"

"Yes. I do not remember how, but my anger made me black out and I awoke next to his corpse."

Sephiroth's expression grew less sinister and more inquisitive.

"They said that something in my eyes resembled _you_. Vincent is afraid of me. I have never seen fear in him before…"

She lowered her head and allowed her hair to cover her eyes. She summoned Sephiroth's power and made sure that she wouldn't lose control. The grip on her sword tightened.

"I discovered what they meant by that. _You_ ruined my only chance to be on the good side. _I _ruined my chance to be on the bad side by having good intentions."

Loren looked at her sword and saw the color of her eyes reflecting off of it. She looked up at Sephiroth and growled.

"I can only be on my own side now, thanks to you!"

Sephiroth's mouth opened a little bit.

"Your eyes…"

"Yes, my eyes! That is why they now fear me!"

"They…are like mine…they know no mercy…know no happiness…know no fear…but they are different. Those eyes know love. Strange…a love without happiness. How is that so?"

Lore shook and glared at him.

"Shut up!"

She charged him and sent several slashes and jabs his way. He dodged and blocked, talking all the while.

"Come now, you must tell me. How is it possible to love without being happy?"

"You have never known happiness either! You say you have never known love. You love yourself and probably your lovely mother Jenova, too, so who are you to say anything?"

Sephiroth's eye twitched and he assaulted her with several devastating blows. She blocked most except the last one, which got her on the arm. Luckily, it wasn't her sword arm, so she was still able to attack. She jumped behind him and slashed. She thought she had missed, but was instantly corrected when Sephiroth's hair fell a little past the middle of his back. She backed up a few steps as he turned and saw that more than two feet of hair had been removed from his head. He grew rigid as he remembered something from his childhood.

_Sephiroth had been running around the lab, letting his long hair go wherever it pleased. He had been a child of seven at the time, and as any other child, he had a tendency to grab things that he wasn't supposed to and spoke when he wasn't supposed to. All that week, he had been trying to hold Hojo's hand, but the scientist kept yelling at him for being a 'stupid boy' and being 'just as pathetic as the rest of the children'. On one of the worst days of his life, Sephiroth overheard Hojo talking about a woman named Lucrecia and how he wanted her to be sent to a place where no one would ever find her. Later on that day, President Shinra had summoned him to his office. The fat man had leaned over his desk to peer at the young boy. _

'_So my young friend, have you learned anything today? Any combat moves, any mathematics?'_

'_No, sir,' he had answered, 'I learned something about a lady named Lucrecia, though.'_

'_Oh, really? What did you learn about her?'_

'_Well, Daddy Hojo wanted her to be sent to a place where no one could find her and that since she was going to die anyway just to lock her in that place forever. Another person showed up and was very angry and Daddy Hojo shot him and told the other man to put him in his private lab in Ni…Ni…Nim…in a place with a weird name. The other man was carried away and he did not have an arm and blood was everywhere and Daddy Hojo was laughing and saying that 'that pesky Turk is out of the way', 'he will be a good specimen' and lots of other things.'_

_President Shinra sat back in his chair and scratched his beard._

'_That is a very disturbing thing to learn, Sephiroth. You should probably just forget that it ever happened. Go ahead and go now, okay?'_

'_Yes, sir. Goodbye, Mr. Shinra.'_

_Later that night, Hojo came to Sephiroth's bed fuming. He picked Sephiroth up by the hair and dragged him into the lab. Hojo repeatedly hit Sephiroth, making him bleed, cursing him and yelling at him to never tell anybody what he did. As a final punishment, knowing that Sephiroth liked to play with his hair at his young age, Hojo cut his hair above his neck and hit him a few more times for good measure. He then made Sephiroth endure a double dosage of Mako (he had been getting the injections for nearly two years now) and sent him to bed bloody and covered in tears._

Sephiroth gripped Masamune tighter and trembled in rage.

"You made me remember him. You made me remember that damned scientist. You made me remember the pain I had endured that night. All because you cut my hair. I do not know if I should thank you for helping me remember to get revenge or to kill you for making me relive painful memories."

Loren tensed.

"I know what you mean."

"What? How could you possibly know what I mean?"

"I did not exactly have a perfect childhood, either. At least you had a place to sleep. I lived in the streets. I did not even have parents. I had to live my life the hard way. Yours may have been hard because you had to go through Mako injections since you were little and you had an abusive 'father'. That is nothing when you have to live off of garbage, sleep on the side of a building and get beaten up all the time by random people. I was considered nobody. That is why I killed so many people in my teens. I made them see that I was somebody. Have you ever gotten to a level of stress that you cut yourself repeatedly to lower the level just a bit?"

Sephiroth paused then removed the wrist cuff on his left arm. He lifted his sleeve to show several long gashes along his arm that seemed to be self-inflicted because of the depth and cleanliness of the cut. The word 'DIE' had been inscribed in his arm several times in varying areas. Loren nodded.

"Then you must understand what I am saying. You must know what it is like."

Sephiroth lowered his sleeve and replaced the cuff.

"I want to ask you something."

"What?"

"It is a question I asked a long time ago. Are you sure you are on the right side?"

Loren paused this time.

"I do not know anymore. Why would I be on a side where they fear me and shun me because there is something inside of me that they consider evil? Right now, your side seems kind of appealing. We have been through much in our lives and people fear us for what we are…for who we are. We have used people for our own benefit. We have killed people to gain acknowledgment. We have done so much for the people we hate just to keep them happy, but it is never enough. We have much in common right now. I have nothing in common with the opposite side right now. It is no use to go to the other side if Vincent fears me…if he hates me…"

"Do you accept my offer of joining my side then?"

"Until I can find my own way, yes. I accept."

His evil smirk returned in full.

"Very good. I am going to have to ask you to fix the problem of my hair though."

"I will make it look the way it did before, just shorter."

"Good, then let us move. I do not want to waste any more time here in this accursed land."

"Do you have a Restore materia? I need to heal my arm."

Sephiroth turned and took off his glove. He stepped up to her and placed his hand over the wound. A green light escaped from his fingertips and her wound disappeared.

"No, I do not."

He turned and kept walking. Loren looked at the wound in vague interest.

"_Hmm, innate magical abilities. How interesting…"_

"Hurry up, woman. I do not have all day."

"Yes, I am coming. You have the patience of a wild mustang."

And so starts a new twist of the tale…

A/N: Ha, what did ya think? Yay, I feel so weird! I dunno, did you see that coming? I hope it at least surprises you a bit or at least makes you feel tingly with anticipation for the next chappie. Aargh, must find a way to make people happy. Must make reviewers want more….lots and lots more. AAHAHAHAHAHA! Oh, right, sorry.


	10. Chapter 10

"Get out of my way!"

"No, I will not let you move."

"If you do not move, I will kill you!"

"I do not fear your idle threats."

"You think they are idle? We will see how idle they are when you are dead on the floor!"

"I am forbidding you to move."

"You are _forbidding _me? Let me see, damn you!"

Loren didn't budge.

"I will only move as long as you do not freak out."

Sephiroth growled menacingly at her.

"If you do not move right now, I will 'freak out' as you call it! What is it that you have done to my hair to make you not want me to see it? Move, damn it!"

"I will only let you see the mirror if you do not go into a rage."

Sephiroth growled.

"Fine, whatever, just let me see!"

Loren narrowed her eyes and stepped to the side. Sephiroth quickly stepped up to the mirror and observed himself. His expression remained impassive. His hair didn't seem so different from above the shoulders, but it seemed so strange to see his hair so short again (in his terms). The shorter parts were only less than half a foot below his shoulder and the longer rested in the middle of his back (observe a picture of Yazoo for reference). A strange smile found its way to Sephiroth's lips. Loren took another step backwards.

"I have not seen my hair this short since I was around the age of 17. When I became General."

Loren remained silent.

"………I need him dead."

"…"

"I need Hojo dead."

Loren stared at the ground.

"He is still in Midgar."

Sephiroth turned to face her. Loren tensed.

"He is?"

"Yes. Later on in the game, he fires the Sister Ray at the Crater. The barrier wears off, so Cloud and the others can enter your domain."

"Is that so? Fa…Hojo must die. He created my miserable existence. He ruined my only chance of ever being a normal child."

Loren continued to gaze at the floor, occasionally looking up to glance at Sephiroth. Her thoughts were going wild. _'Why do I pity him?' _she screamed, _'he ruined me! He made Vincent fear me! I hate him! If anything, I should kill him to end his…endless…suffering…I would kill him out of pity. Everything I would do for him or to him would be out of pity. Is he just that much a wreck of a man? Maybe I should just lighten up…just a lit—what the hell am I saying? Is he still manipulating me even while I stand near him? What a horrible creature! What a distraught, horrid thing! I only pity him because he is a monster of a man! People like him are only meant to die! …As am I…'_

"Argh!"

Loren fell to the floor and punched it. Sephiroth looked down at her in slight confusion and annoyance.

"What…are…you…? Why are you still screwing with my mind? Can you not just leave me alone?"

"I have done nothing of the sort. If you are having trouble keeping your thoughts together, that is your fault, not mine."

"No, I know it is you! You have got to be behind this! Why then would I degrade myself to your level by saying I should die like you?"

Sephiroth reached down and grabbed her by the throat. She looked up at him in fury.

"Degrade yourself by dying like me? I am going to be a god! I cannot die! If I were to die, I would die as a god! What is this that you are telling me? Do you pity me? You should not do so, for there is no reason to. I am everything that is and everything that will be. You would do well to remember that."

He promptly released her and she remained on the ground. Loren simply sat and thought of everything she had and how she lost it…again. In her childhood she had a nice family, house, and a fair amount of money. She had lost it all. Now she had had wonderful friends, someone she could love, and a reason to live. She had lost it all again. She grew dismal and withered before Sephiroth's eyes. He turned and left her to herself while he thought of another place to go. She straightened the collar on her new black outfit (slightly resembles the ones Kadaj and the others wear, just not so tight and not made of leather or whatever that stuff is) and sighed. The Rocket Town inn's lobby was oblivious to her as she stood and dragged herself to her room. She shut the door behind her and collapsed on the bed. She finally let herself go and cried. After a good time, she fell asleep and was soon awakened by Sephiroth's deep, smooth, melodic voice. The voice would have sounded better on anyone else, but she opened her eyes and she saw his glowing green eyes above her. His voice painfully reminded her of Cloud, but immediately noted that Sephiroth's voice had a cold, emotionless tinge thrown in, whilst Cloud's had more of a healthy, somewhat aloof note in it.

"Get up, we are going to Nibelheim."

"Why?"

"Do not question me, woman. We must leave."

"What happened? What is in Nibelheim?"

"I told you not to question me! Get up!"

Sephiroth grabbed her arm and heaved her over his shoulder. Loren remained silent as Sephiroth continued to carry her out of the inn and out of Rocket Town. He then tossed her on the ground and went on walking. Loren wordlessly rose, brushed herself off, and strode quickly to catch up to him. Later on, though, he answered her question.

"Your friends are over in Nibelheim."

Loren looked up quickly and paused for a second before continuing to walk.

"Why are you taking me over there?"

"I need you to befriend them again and lead them to me. From then on, you can do what you wish because your purpose will have been served. You can seek your revenge or fight me, it matters not."

"I see. I will do as I must."

"Good. Walk faster."

Loren increased her speed and caught up to him. He didn't even glance at her. In a matter of a couple of hours, they arrived in Nibelheim.

"Go to the inn and observe them before approaching them."

"…"

"Hurry up."

"…"

Loren strode purposefully to the inn and looked in through the window. Surprisingly, at this time of night, everybody was still awake. She quickly went to the door and placed her ear against it. She began to listen in on their conversation. It was about her. Her heartbeat accelerated. She recognized Cloud's voice.

"Alright, so do you think that's what we're supposed to do? Just keep looking?"

Barret's voice broke through the silence easily.

"Of course, you damn foo'! We can't jus' let someone like her go free!"

Loren's eyebrows furrowed together. What was so different about her? _'Oh, right,' _she thought, _'Sephiroth.'_ Her heart almost stopped altogether when she heard Vincent's voice pierce the room.

"What exactly do you mean by that, Wallace? Are you saying she's different from the rest of us? It was an accident! She was just defending herself from me!"

Yuffie's voice quickly countered.

"With that scary glow in her eyes, I don't think it was just her! I know she's my sister, but I still hold a measure of fear of her."

A pounding noise, probably from Vincent or someone else was heard.

"But it still wasn't her fault! It was Sephiroth's fault, then! I was delusional at the time, so I naturally freaked out. I never liked Sephiroth's eyes, so when I saw them right near me, I jumped away!"

Tifa's voice backed him up.

"You know, he's right. I was frightened, but now that I think about it, it really wasn't her fault. We should just look for her and bring her back to us."

Cait Sith's voice wavered out to be heard.

"I don't know about you guys, but I don't really trust her all that much, especially now that Sephiroth has controlled her and all."

Cloud's voice turned angry.

"Hey, I've been controlled by Sephiroth on several occasions, so don't distrust her for that!"

Cait Sith countered.

"Okay, but what about how she quickly got used to us being here? That seemed kinda strange to me, considering we're from another world."

Silence met Loren's ears. Her heart sank. Now there was more than enough reason to doubt her. Vincent's voice met her again.

"I guess that's how she could be different from the rest of her world. She can react to any situation to the point that it doesn't negatively affect her."

Cait Sith persistently argued.

"So you see? She isn't one to be trusted!"

Red XIII finally spoke up.

"No, that isn't technically so. She could just know how to harness her inner emotions so that they won't go flying out of control and make her weakness obvious."

Cait gave no rebuttal this time. Cloud broke through the silence.

"Let's just turn in, sleep on it, and make a final decision in the morning. Does that sound good?"

Tifa consented on that and bid everyone goodnight. Chairs scraped against the floor and footsteps were heard going down a hall. Loren ran to the side of the building, lest Cid discover her if he decides to smoke a cigarette, or anybody else for that matter. Loren sat on the side of the building for about twenty minutes and proceeded to enter the building quietly. The innkeeper greeted her, but she silenced him by placing a finger to her lips. She silently stepped up to him and whispered, "I do not want to disturb the silence." The man nodded his accord and she gave him a few gil to keep silent. She crept silently along the hall and listened at the doors. Most were silent and a couple rooms were empty with open doors. She heard a door handle being turned and quickly stepped into one. When she peered out the door, she saw the small form of Yuffie making its way to a different room. She carefully closed the door behind her and Loren emerged from her hiding spot. She stepped into the fortunately empty room next to the one Yuffie entered and placed her ear against the wall. She heard the voices coming from the inside. One was Yuffie's. The other's…was Vincent's. Loren pressed her ear closer to the wall.

"What do you want, Yuffie?"

"Nothing much, I just wanted to see what you were up to. This is weird."

"What?"

"I've never seen you without your cape, headband, and that glove on your shooting hand before."

Loren almost choked on herself. _'Well, is this interesting, or what?' _her inner voice mused. She paid very close attention to their conversation now.

"Vinnie?"

"What, Yuffie?"

A pause.

"I know this may sound rude, and I know I consider her my sister, but what did you see in her?"

A longer pause.

"She reminds me of myself. Her eyes and attitude remind me of myself. Why do you ask?"

"Oh, nothing, I was just curious."

The pause seemed endless now. Loren took the opportunity to go and listen at the door instead. The voices continued.

"Do you miss her?"

"…"

"Vinnie?"

"You will never know how much. It feels like losing Lucrecia all over again."

"Oh…"

Loren heard a slight shuffling and heard the springs of a bed being weighed down.

"Can I ask you one more thing?"

"What? I'm getting tired of your constant questioning."

"Can I kiss you? Or you kiss me? Just once? I've always wanted to know what you feel like."

"Yuffie…that isn't a good idea."

"Please? Just once? I'll never ask anything of you again."

"…"

Silence met her ears. A slight rustle of the sheets told her that Yuffie had gone in for the prize. She rose, opened the door and found Yuffie's lips locked with Vincent's. Her heart ceased beating.

"Hello, Vincent."

Yuffie placed a small hand on Vincent's face and slowly placed her lips on his. Vincent felt like pulling away, but he didn't want to hurt her feelings. A strange feeling crept inside of him and in a split second he heard a voice that cut into his heart.

"Hello, Vincent."

Vincent pulled away and locked his shocked ruby orbs on her passive gray ones.

"Loren…"

"I see it did not take long for you to move on. You may have missed me and loved me, but your lips on Yuffie's tell me otherwise."

Vincent stood.

"No, you don't understand…"

"I understand perfectly. I was listening at the door. Some sister you are, Yuffie."

"Sis, I'm really sorry! I just wanted to know what Vin was like."

"You mean his lips. I have no need for you apologies. I am just back to be around what has kept me alive for all these months."

Silence rang in Loren's ears.

"You should know that I am talking about you, Vincent."

"Yes, I know. But…what kept you away for so long?"

"I was learning to control the part of me that was not really part of me to begin with."

"Sephiroth?"

Loren nodded.

"Of course. I would not want to frighten you again like I did last time."

"I was delusional. I was thinking you would know that."

"Of course I do. I was listening to your debate in the lobby a while ago. Yes, I have been here for quite some time. I happened to come across you all in the inn. I was coming to observe the Valentine mansion for myself, but I was delayed by your appearance."

Vincent strode over to her and took her in a hug.

"I thought you were gone from me forever. I am so sorry I didn't find you sooner."

Loren kept her arms to her sides as she gazed at his raven hair in petulance.

"I am sorry I kept you waiting, Vincent. I was busy trying to get rid of the monster I had inside of me. I thought killing you once was enough."

Vincent let go of her and looked into her eyes.

"You're back to the way you once were. Why?"

"Time changes people. Being around different people can change me. Being around no one at all can change me…Yuffie, what are you still doing here?"

Yuffie quickly rose.

"I'm sorry, I'll be leaving now!"

"Good. Run while you are at it, or I will speed your exit myself."

Yuffie quickly took off running into the hall and into the room she originally came out of. Loren strode over to the bed and sat on it. Vincent closed the door and joined her. Vincent stared at her while she stared at the floor.

"Your clothes, your attitude, the weapon you carry at your side…it's all different."

"I have already told you. Being away from the people I love…_loved_…changed me. I have no need for anyone, as I will only end up getting hurt again."

"I didn't want to hurt Yuffie's feelings. I was delirious. Those reasons apply to the two situations that made it seem like you were nothing to me. You should know that those were only temporary."

"Am I temporary as well?"

Vincent grabbed her hand and held it in his.

"No, you are my life!"

Loren felt her defenses beginning to fail.

"Are you sure? Does your love for me resemble the land of the north: never changing, or does it resemble the seasons of the west?"

Vincent's hold on her hand tightened.

"I love you with my soul. Nothing could change that."

"I see. I really am sorry I took so long to come back. I thought that you all would not want me to return after what I did to you."

"No. We were going to keep looking for you."

"For different reasons, but looking all the same, I suppose?"

"Yes."

Her defenses completely wore away.

"Vincent!"

She held on to him as she had held on to him all that time ago. Vincent couldn't comprehend how he felt at that minute. He felt like laughing, crying, and doing nothing at the same time.

"I love you, Loren."

"…Vincent…"

"It's okay, you don't have to say anything."

The next few minutes were spent in silence and were utterly ruined when the whole group burst through the door. Cloud stood in confounded silence, Tifa bound to Loren and took her in a huge hug, Barret crossed his arms, Cait Sith shifted uneasily at the sight of her, and everyone else was just pouring into the room to see the bizarre sudden appearance of the woman they had sought to find. Loren remained impassive as everyone gazed upon her. A small grin graced her lips.

"What, are you afraid that I will go berserk on you again? Well, watch and behold what has transpired in the past few months!"

She willed the power in her to come forth and as before everyone stepped back upon seeing the green glow in her eyes. She smiled and laughed to herself.

"What a shame that you all fear me over a little color in my eyes. I know how to control this power that Sephiroth left in me. I am still here. He has not taken control over me. You see, after he left my body, a residue of him was left in me that took over when my emotions reached extremes. When this would happen, I would black out and usually wake up in a puddle of blood. In all the time that I have been away from you all, I have been training my body and harnessing this little bit of residue to add to the power already growing in me naturally. In short, I can make myself about as powerful as Sephiroth himself."

Shocked silence met her as it now usually did. Cloud stepped forward slowly and looked her straight in the eye, though he winced at first.

"Loren…is that really you? Are you not being controlled by Sephiroth?"

"Sephiroth must die for almost taking you all away from me permanently."

Cloud smiled and nodded.

"That's the spirit."

She willed the power to rest and her eyes gained back their normal grey hue. She then tried not to flinch as a voice pierced her thoughts. _'Do not forget,'_ it admonished, _'to lead them to me. If you do, I will come after you instead. Then, once you are dead, I will go after your friends.' _Loren inwardly grimaced and shot back, _'I shall not forget you fool. I am in the middle of their presence right now!' _The voice roared in her head. She tried her hardest not to flinch. _'Do not talk to me in such a manner! I will hold you to your word and should you go back on it, I will make sure that Vincent dies first. I never liked him anyway.' _Loren inwardly sighed. _'Do not worry. How could I forget when it is coming from you? You are about the most well known villain in RPG history. Now leave me to my business and I shall bring you the group tomorrow.'_ The voice no longer spoke to her and she snapped back to reality. Everyone was looking at her strangely. She waved her hand in dismissal.

"It is nothing. I was only thinking about home. About how I do not miss it, about how I wish I could stay here…what is everyone still doing here? You all must sleep and wake up fresh and rejuvenated! Tifa, I want to visit your home and Cloud, I would like to visit yours as well. Vincent, I would especially like to visit your home. I happen to have a high interest in old mansions."

Everyone nodded stupidly and walked off to their corresponding rooms. Loren remained in Vincent's. Vincent looked at her curiously.

"I will sleep on the floor. I have nowhere else to go, unless you have a suggestion, of course."

"No. I wouldn't have you anywhere else, but you should sleep on the bed instead. I am more accustomed to the hard floors."

"Vincent, I have been sleeping outside in grassy, rocky rural land for quite some time now. I think I am more situated to the ground than even you."

"Loren, I insist."

"If you want to be so persistent about it, how about we both sleep on the bed or floor?"

Vincent strode over to her, lifted her over his shoulder, and carried her over to the bed. He gently placed her on it and he reclined against the wall. Loren gave in after a few more minutes of arguing and fell asleep. She was discontent with the comfort of the bed and joined Vincent on the floor. She rested her head on his shoulder and fell asleep there. Vincent smiled to himself and grasped her smaller, warm hand in his larger cool one. He then assented himself to sleep.

A/N: I think it was a little too mushy after a while, but at least they're together again. I was wondering though…what did you (SephirothValentine) mean in your last review? It's been driving me nuts ever since I read it and I…MUST…KNOW! Okay, yeah, please tell. Please. Yayness, I love all my reviewers! I believe my fic is bound to get bloodier, so don't drop out on me now! Please. I say that too often. Sorry. Thank you all for sticking with me this long. I never thought I would actually get this far. You see, I have a stupid tendency to stop writing stories after a while and never finish them. I am determined to finish this one! I mean, honestly, ten chapters is a hell of a lot for me. In all my writing life, I've only written one chapter stories that go on forever or stories with a few chapters, but only a few (around 3). Yay, Strings (violin, viola, etc., etc.) classes are fun! Thanks again, and please review! Oh, and Sephiroth, you're being a complete asshole. Meanie!

Seph: And? What's your point?

Loren: She's saying for you to shove it and die.

Seph: I wasn't talking to you.

Loren: And? Your point is?

ES: Loren, you really should stay out of our arguments.

L: Why? I want to kill Sephiroth!

S: Take your best-shot woman!

L: Fiend Inferno!

Giant flame tornado engulfs Sephiroth

S: Nice shot… (feeling crispy effects very badly)

ES: Wow, Loren, that was pretty cool! Do it again!

S: You're kidding me…

L: uses Fiend Inferno again

Sephiroth lay twitching on the ground

Cloud: Nice Limit Break, Loren.

Loren: Oh, that wasn't a Limit Break. It was just a special attack of mine. Do you like it?

C: Uh, yeah, that would be why I said, 'nice Limit Break, Loren'.

Sephiroth rises behind Loren with sword poised horizontally at her throat

C: (sweatdrop) Loren, run away. Now.

L: Huh?

SLICE

ES: Oy vey, okay, while I sew Loren's head back on, please review. Thankies!

S: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Stupid little #$&.

ES: Sephiroth, shut up, or I'll use MY Limit Break on you, and believe you me, it's not pretty.

S: (whimper) What exactly would it be?

ES: Your worst nightmare made a reality.

S: Aah! Hojo in a thong!

C: (turns green and barfs)

ES: Well that was highly disturbing…

(Seph starts banging his head on a wall trying to shake the image of Hojo doing the thong song out of his mind)

ES: Err, right…I believe this has gone on long enough. Review. Please. Level 1 Limit Break: Disappear! (poof) (Sephiroth runs away still trying to erase image) (Cloud gets up)

C: Hey, where is everyone? (tear) (tear) (bawls like baby)


	11. Chapter 11

Morning came and everyone indeed felt rejuvenated. Loren woke up in Vincent's lap and promptly rose, not letting Vincent see the flush in her cheeks. In about half and hour after Loren rose, everybody was downstairs.

"Good morning, everyone."

Everyone looked up from their breakfasts at her; some reiterated the message, others spoke through their food, which was promptly reprimanded, some nodded, and some did nothing at all. Loren smirked to herself and sat away from everybody else in a corner of the lobby. A plate of food was soon given to her and she began to eat while thinking. _'At least some of them said something. I do not know; maybe their mouths were too full of food to say anything to me. Maybe they do not trust me. Maybe they hate me. No, I am thinking pessimistically. I cannot do this to myself! But they have not known me for very long, so they could think that this is how I really am. Maybe they are right. I am double-crossing them after all…but that is for them, not for me! I am protecting them! I can help them fight Sephiroth and have a better chance of winning, while on the other hand, I could be dead and they would be plucked off one by one, with Vincent going first. I just cannot have that. I just…cannot…is this really for them? Or is it for me? Argh, I am just going to ignore this and mayhap it would be better for all of us if I just did not speak. I will just have to keep my guilty conscience to myself or I will have more than a guilty conscience to worry about. I will have to deal with odd stares and sidelong glances of distrust. Is this how Vincent felt when I gave him that distrustful stare when I first came into my apartment? I must apologize for that. Will they not give me those horrible stares anyway? Argh, I am thinking too hard! What is wrong with me? Why can I not just…'_

Her train of thought broke when a hard cold hand gripped her shoulder. She looked up and saw Vincent gazing at her concernedly.

"Are you alright? You were so absorbed in your thoughts that you looked like me."

Loren shook her head.

"I was just thinking too hard. Come, sit by me."

Vincent went and took a seat on her left. She glanced at him then back at the table.

"How did you react when I first looked at you?"

Vincent remained silent for a moment.

"The way I normally do everyone else. I was passive. I always wondered about your appearance, though. I always thought you too pale to be healthy. Your skin has a strange quality to it to the point that it glows if under any source of light."

Loren's lips slightly curved up in a smile.

"Well, it has been years since I have truly been in direct sunlight. I have never really paid much attention to my complexion."

"I see."

A moment of silence.

"I want you back to the way you used to be."

"…"

"I miss the old you. The person you are right now is so solemn and formal."

"So you want me to be wild and arbitrary? Is that what you want? I expected more of you, Vincent."

"That's not what I meant. I just want you to relax a little and to not be so absorbed in your thoughts. I've been there. It's not very happy."

"I do not think I was ever aiming for happy. I remain absorbed in my thoughts so I do not hurt anyone anymore."

Vincent narrowed his eyes in thought.

"You said you had nearly been driven insane the last time you listened to someone. People have come and gone and used and abused you. I imagine you must have had several relationships. You are alone right now. You must have left them, am I correct?"

"…Yes."

"So how is it that you do not want to hurt anyone despite how much you've been hurt?"

Loren's eye twitched.

"That is the stupidest question anyone has ever asked me. The obvious answer is that I know what it is like to go through such an intense pain as someone hurting you."

Vincent averted his eyes, seemingly feeling stupid.

"Oh."

"Look. Can I be alone for a while? I know I came back to be with you all, but I need to ponder over something for a little bit."

"Okay. I'll be with the others. Call me if you need anything."

"Thank you."

Vincent slowly walked over to the main table where everyone else was. Loren was glad that Vincent didn't ask any questions, but had to wonder why he didn't to begin with. Usually he would ask why. Again Loren started to argue with herself. _'Damn, I feel so guilty. They are treating me at least remotely normal again and I am just going to lead them to their deaths…No, that will not happen. They will defeat Sephiroth. They will, they will…I will help them. Yes, I will help them beat him. I want to remain with Vincent. I will not lose him again!'_ Even though she had only thought for a while, it had taken about five minutes to get it all done.

Loren stood and strode over to the main table. The table quieted and looked up at her warily and expectantly.

"Cloud, Tifa, Vincent…can we hurry and finish so I can go see your homes?"

They seemed a little caught off guard, but quickly recovered and agreed. Breakfast was quickly finished and all stepped outside into the cool air. The crispness of the air gave the impression that it was deep into autumn. Loren couldn't resist. She smiled and then laughed. Half the group gave her a weird expression. She laughed again.

"What month is it?"

Cloud raised an eyebrow, smirking.

"It's November, why?"

"Oh, nothing. Autumn just puts me in good spirits. I love the cool air and the shorter days. What day is it, anyway?"

Cloud shrugged.

"Hey Red, what day is it?"

"It is Tuesday, the 22nd."

"I see. Oh, what a beautiful day!"

Vincent smiled a crooked smile and caught up to Loren.

"You seem happier now."

"Oh, yes. I feel much better."

"Well that's good. I'm glad your spirits have improved contrary to last night."

Cloud perked up at this.

"What? What did you all do last night?" I heard something about improved and night."

Loren's face screwed up in disgust.

"You pervert! Are you thinking what I think you are? Oh, how disgusting, Cloud!"

Cloud shrugged innocently.

"Hey, what do you expect? The way you all just stayed in the same room last night can instill some form of _that_ in my mind. I mean, you came down flushed this morning and I can suspect that you all have become lovers."

Loren's eyes melted from gray to glowing green. Cloud backed a few steps.

"Nothing of the sort has happened! I have never even thought of such a thing and I am sure Vincent has not thought of such things either…right, Vincent?"

Vincent face flushed the color of his cloak. Loren backed a few steps. Neither said anything for a minute. Cloud ran off. Loren grabbed her sword. Vincent's eyes lit in surprise.

"I cannot believe this! You are unbelievable! Oh my…! I did not know you even thought like that!"

"sigh All men think that way, Loren. It's inevitable. I imagine even you have thought this way before even if it wasn't me."

"No, I have not! Oh, I must get away from you! I cannot believe this!"

"Loren…!"

She drew her sword and pointed it at him dangerously.

"Stay away for now. I need time alone."

"I…okay. There's no point in arguing."

Loren put her sword away and fled from his sight, again not allowing him to see her flushing face. She ran to the safety of the mansion, skipping Cloud and Tifa's houses entirely, not even noticing. As she ran inside, she suddenly felt safe, but still unnerved for some reason as if she were in danger. She pushed such thoughts aside and collapsed on one of the dust-covered couches. She smiled to herself.

"_I am going to have to pay for that later."_

Her thoughts shifted back to him though. She shuddered. _'I cannot believe he has thought of such things! I thought he was above that…then again…have I ever had those same thoughts before? I always thought he was attractive, but to think of that…maybe I reacted too harshly…I was just caught off guard…no! I have never had such thoughts cross me before…have I? Ugh, why can I not remember? Damn it!'_

The next thing she knew, she was being lifted from the couch, and flying across the room to slam against the opposite wall. The wind knocked from her body, she lay on the floor, gasping for breath. She looked down to see a bright red line running down the middle of her chest. The rattling of chains brought to her attention a **(insert creature name)**. She tensed and brought her sword to the ready. Her power completely focused, her eyes glowing green, she leaped in the air and brought her sword down upon the creature, the blade eagerly feasting on its flesh. It screamed in agony and launched itself at her, the giant blade it rested on soaring towards her. She easily dodged the attack but was caught off guard when its fist flew into her face, sending her flying backwards again. She laughed for the joy of it all. She launched her body toward the creature and lobbed off one of its arms. The man-thing fell from its perch and writhed on the floor, struggling against the bonds of death. Loren stood over the wretched thing and ended its misery by plunging her sword into its skull, spraying blood all over her. She withdrew her sword and placed it back in its sheath. She remained alert, though, because she felt as if she was being watched. A sudden impulse compelled her to jump, and she did as a bullet flew below her. Her eyes glowing once again, she grabbed onto the chain that remained from the creature she had just slain. Looking around, she searched for the origin of the bullet. A glimpse of crimson from her right made her heart skip. Was that Vincent? No, it couldn't be. But Vincent wore crimson and bore a gun. She couldn't help but feel anxious. What would he be shooting at her for? She had to ask.

"Vincent? Is that you?"

A cold voice rang out in the empty mansion.

"So, you have come here, of all places."

It sounded like him so she continued, fearfully.

"Well, yes, I could only think of this place. After what happened, this is the only refuge I thought of."

"You shouldn't be here. Get out."

"But…Vincent…you seemed to agree to my request before. Why the sudden change of heart?"

"This is my home. No one should be here. Only me. Only my basement, my precious basement…"

Loren's eyes narrowed. Vincent hated that place. It brought too many memories, too much burden…Loren tensed.

"You are not Vincent! Vincent hates that basement as much as Cloud does! Imposter, show yourself!"

Terse laughter followed her outburst.

"You seemingly know Vincent more than I thought. Alright, fine, I will show myself to you."

A man in a white lab coat stepped from the shadows. He wore glasses, had greasy hair, and held a gun and crimson cloth at his side. Disgust swelled in Loren's breast at the sight of him, the wretched man, Hojo. A sickening smile was plastered on his face, and more horrifyingly so, a look of avid curiosity.

"Your eyes…they are just like his…"

"Yes they are. They are just like your son's. I hate these eyes of his, but I will use them knowing that my power is increased and that it will aid my cause to stop you and him."

Hojo snorted in laughter.

"Son? I've never had a son. If you're speaking of Sephiroth, he was just a perfect but failed experiment. I never had the ability to procreate, so I let her be with Vincent and she soon was heavy with child. I had never been happier."

"Lucrecia…"

"Yes, I let the little whore go and screw Vincent, then she came back to me and allowed her own fetus to be experimented on…all in the name of science. What a stupid woman. I'm glad she did what she did though, or Sephiroth, my perfect specimen, wouldn't be here."

"You have a twisted mind."

"Of course, that is why my work is now incomplete due to you."

Loren's eyes narrowed and her brows furrowed in confusion and anger.

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, don't you worry, that will be fixed all in due time, ha ha ha!"

"Hojo, what are you…?"

She was never able to finish her sentence because a dart flew into her arm. She flinched in pain and took out the dart, but the deed was done. Drowsiness overcame her and the disgusting, and now terrifying, laughter of Hojo enveloped her senses before she lost consciousness.

Hojo looked down at the unconscious--and undeniably beautiful--body, and smiled.

"Now we will see how good of a specimen you really are, my dear."

A/N: Helloes! How are my beloved readers faring? I'm truly sorry for the wait! Finals, solo/ensemble, school concerts, writer's block, no internet (I've been having to use other people's comps!), blah, blah, blah, along with an introduction to DDR (Geez, that caused me a lotta pain! It's pretty interesting, though); it all caused me to take forever! And the moos go cow. Yes, yes. Reviews, thanks yous very much. Loren is going to be pretty decorated once I get through with her.

L: Decorated? What do you mean, 'decorated'?

ES: Well, you already have the optional eyeball thingies…

L: What next? Are you going to give me fangs next?

ES: Fangs? I didn't think of that…

L: No, no! I take that back! Geez, make me grow wings, why don'tcha?

ES: What, did I hear wings? Ooooh…. (Evil plan forming)

L: Aw, crap.

ES: Don't worry. I won't make you have either of those. (yet. Mwa ha ha!)

L: Get away from meeeeeee!

ES: Oh, okay, fine! Just let me do what I will.

Seph: Envelop her in eternal flames or something.

L: Fiend Infer--! (Vincent enters)

S: (whimpering)

L: Vincent! (jumps on Vin)

V: Hey. (looks around. Sees Sephiroth) Aah, Sephiroth! Attack, attack! Chaos! (transforms)

S: I can take you on! (gets poked by Chaos; flies backwards) Aaaaaahhhh!

S: (stands) That's it! Super No--!

L: Fiend Inferno!

S: D-damn…grr…grraaahhhh! (kills Vin; removes Loren's arms with Masamune)

ES: Goddammit, Sephiroth! I've had it with you! Limit Break: Living Nightmare! (grabs Cloud and hides him; puts on shades) (Hojo appears in a thong)

H: …Gotta see that tho-o-ong! Baby! That thong, thong, thong, thong, thong…!

S: (mortified) Noooooooooooooooo!

H: Come on, son, join me! Tho-o-ong…!

S: I hate you, ES…

ES: Not my fault. Review **_please_**! Don't throw up either!

H: Th-o-o-o-o-onggggg……


	12. Chapter 12

Slipping constantly through consciousness, pain was all she could feel. She felt needles going through her, something cold tracing her arms, and there were times when she could vaguely remember herself screaming, only to feel more needles and lose consciousness once more. While she slept, she was in an area that was completely black. Loren rose from the ground.

"Where…am I?"

She took a look around.

"_In a place where I am your only solace from complete darkness and solitude."_

She whirled to the direction of the sound.

"Who are you?"

"_I am you."_

"What do you mean?"

"_It is exactly as it sounds. I am you, just in a different form."_

She froze. 'Different form'? She thought back to Hojo. _'He made me lose consciousness. I wake up to pain only to be put to sleep again. What…oh, God…no…'_

"Show yourself to me."

A slight rustle of clothing was heard in front of her and a person stepped forward. It seemed to have no set gender, as it had no breasts but did not seem manly. The person had long black hair as she did and wore a long black robe. There was something distinctly different about it, though. Its eyes were cat-like and bright yellow, and something resembling spines or spikes was visible near the hairline. As the person smiled, sharp fangs were shown. It was then noticed that the person's feet didn't touch the ground. It had sharp nails that were the color of blood.

Loren stepped forward and touched the person's chest. It was hard as rock and felt as if made of metal. The person lowered the collar of the robe and Loren could see that the person's torso and parts of the arms were indeed made of a black metal. She looked down and saw that the person's feet were clawed.

"You…are me?"

"_Is that hard to believe?"_

"Indeed, it is. You are not female. You are clawed, fanged, and are of metal. I do find it hard to see you as myself."

"_I am you. I am summoned from the darkness inside of you and the many toxins that have been injected into your body, including the cells of Jenova."_

"Jenova…toxins…darkness…it created you? You hate the fact that you were created, do you not?"

"_I was meant to be here. I can feed off of you without affecting you, feed off your emotions, while you can physically become me and have my strength to add to yours. What say you; do we have a bargain?"_

"I…I do not know. What if you are lying to me?"

"_I could always be lying. But the decision is yours to make."_

"But…if you are in me, why not just take over?"

The demon smiled.

"_Unlike my dark friend Chaos, I believe in fairness. And many other things, for that matter."_

Loren stared at the demon.

"You know Chaos? He is your friend? How, if you have just been created?"

The demon smiled again.

"_We have been brought into one's conscience, not simply created from nothing. We do have an origin. Once we find a host, we leave that plane of existence."_

Thoughts whirred through Loren's head.

"So do you know Galian Beast, Hellmasker, and Death Gigas?"

"_Quite fondly."_

The demon paused and looked at Loren.

"_Wake up. Something is amiss."_

"Do you know what?"

"_Hojo is coming. If you awaken and catch him off guard, you can escape. But…something else is at work here…"_

"…Alright."

Loren opened her eyes slowly and adjusted to the light above her. The sound of footsteps alerted her to Hojo's coming presence. She closed her eyes again and feigned sleep. The footsteps stopped by her side.

"Hello, my precious specimen. I hope you are comfortable on my table. Sigh, what a beautiful creature. If only I could…"

Loren felt a hand trace her bare arm. It took all the power in her body not to gag.

"But alas, I cannot. I must finish my experiment."

As she heard him turn, she opened her eyes to see that she was naked, baring her scars for all to see and, to her horror, a new array of strange dark violet markings extending all over her body, as if outlining her skeletal structure.

"Oh, I see that you are awake, my dear."

"You bastard…"

She started to rise, but found that she couldn't due to the fact that she was bound to the table.

"Trying to come after me, I see? Oh, do not worry, for I will come to you and you will feel this quite keenly."

He indicated the syringe in his hand and started for her. She struggled furiously. He paused and looked at the door as a blurred silver image knocked him to the ground. Hojo began to stand, staring in abject horror at his 'son', who promptly impaled him in the gut with Masamune.

"My…beautiful…specimen…my…son…Se…ph…i…roth…"

He fell to his knees, blood seeping from his mouth. Sephiroth, sneering, twisted the sword from side to side, causing Hojo to wrench in pain. As he removed the sword, he held it up to Hojo's face.

"I am not your son. This is only a taste of all of the pain you have caused me. You will never destroy another person's life..."

As a finish, Sephiroth chopped off his arms, and then lopped off his head. He glanced at Loren and then looked away. He remained impassive.

"Your clothes are in the corner of the room. Get dressed. You are coming with me."

With quick slices, he released her from her bonds and left the room without another word. Left to her own devices, Loren stopped to think. _'Was that just me, or was Sephiroth actually blushing a little?' _She got off the table, found her clothes, put them on, discovered her sword in a hidden compartment behind a chair, and grabbed any items that she may have had. She stepped outside the room to see Sephiroth waiting right outside.

"How did you get caught by Hojo?"

"He posed as Vincent and sent a tranquilizer from afar. I had no time to recover right before he sent the dart."

"Recover from what?"

"Seeing his greasy head."

Sephiroth's lips twitched. He quickly frowned.

"You have to be more careful. I do not want you to…take my revenge away from me. You could have easily escaped and killed him yourself. I cannot afford that. I needed his death to be by my own hand."

Loren heard someone speak to her.

"_He is satisfied with his little save."_

'_What do you mean?'_

"_He probably wanted to say 'I do not want you to die, or get hurt'."_

'_He would not say something like that. He is too cold.'_

"_Exactly. That is why he caught himself before saying something he would regret."_

'_Something he would regret…by the way, what is your name?'_

"_My name is Death."_

'_Death…?'_

"_I am one of the greater demons, as is Chaos. We have a certain hierarchy. There are the greater demons: Disease, Hatred, Sorrow, Destruction, Death, Chaos, and Oblivion. Oblivion is our 'leader', per se. The lesser demons go by any name given by our main leader, Asmodeus."_

'…_Now that I think about it, you must be pretty powerful.'_

"_I am third rank. My strength is formidable, but only reaches true potential when combined with another's power."_

'_Sephiroth…ah, I see why he would stop himself from saying such things.'_

"_Yes, as do I. I am surprised you are not in denial."_

'_No, it makes perfect sense. Why would I be in denial?'_

"_Because you would say he is not capable of such things."_

'_Sephiroth is perfectly capable. It is the way he works, after all.'_

"…_?"_

'_He does not want me dead because he needs me to betray my friends and lead them into a trap. If I die, who will make his plan work?'_

_There was a slight pause._

"_You have a point. You make it sound so very casual, though. Betraying your friends is not such a normal thing…or is it?"_

"Shut up! You do not know what you are talking about!"

Sephiroth glared at her.

"What?"

Loren averted her eyes.

"Nothing. It is nothing."

Sephiroth backed away from the wall and grabbed her by the front of the shirt.

"You lie. Tell me or it shall be the end of you."

"I have a demon inside of me, all right? I can hear the demon and telepathically converse with it. I just began arguing with it right now and my connection broke due to my anger."

Sephiroth released her and narrowed his eyes.

"So…now you are like Vincent."

"I never wanted this if that is what you are thinking."

"…I never said that, did I?"

"No, but you were thinking it."

"How would you know?"

"I can see it in your expression."

He turned away from her.

"You have not finished your job."

"I am aware of that."

"I will lead you back to them."

"Where are we?"

"A hidden lab in the basement library of the Shin-ra mansion."

Loren chuckled.

"What?"

"Hojo was quite extensive with his secrets. A secret lab inside a secret basement…he goes to great lengths."

"Yes…he does."

He led her to the end of the hall and out into the library; Loren's eyes had a little trouble adjusting to the immediate increase in light. Before she got to the door, a hand grabbed her shoulder and shoved her against the door. Sephiroth pinned her against it, one arm on either side of her. He was way to close for her comfort. His eyes pierced hers. She met his stare, but inwardly flinched at the intensity of his gaze.

"…Back…off."

He paused momentarily. Eyes narrowing, he edged closer, close enough for her to feel his breath on her neck.

"Do not fail me again…or I will kill you."

With that he stepped away from her, moved her, pushed open the door and went to the foot of the stairs where he waited for her. She took a last glance at the library and met him. They left the mansion, bought a few Tents, left the town, and were now headed to a place she could still only imagine in pixels: the Nibel Mountains. Despite her senses, she didn't notice the shocked face of Vincent Valentine hiding behind the desk, silent and staring…

A/N: Hello! Thanks for reviews, etc, etc! Heh, I actually feel proud of myself for the whole demon hierarchy thing. SephirothValentine, you rock. I barely paid attention before, but I've noticed that you have read my fic and kept reading it since day 1 despite the huge time gaps. I am honored by that fact. I thank you. It gladdens me that someone can keep reading it.

Loren: Geez, you make it seem so very important. And you make it seem like you're obsessed with SephirothValentine.

ES: It is important to me. And I am not obsessed. I am simply grateful.

Seph: She lies. I say we kill her.

L: I say we kill you and shut you up for good.

S: …She does seem like she is lying, though.

L: She is not. So leave her be.

Vin (far, far away: a little speck): Loren! Loren, where are you!

S: Grateful or not, you are acting too foolish.

ES: Even so, I am grateful. Writing is an important hobby of mine. I am my brother's editor and maybe I shall write a book of my own one of these days, like my brother, so…yes, it's very important.

Don Corneo: Are you going to be famous?

ES: I hope so…

DC: (evil sneer) ooh hoo hoo! _'She'll be rich and hot…I'll take her!' _Are you free on Friday?

ES, L, and S (at the same time): Living Nightmare! Fiend Inferno! Supernova!

(DC gets fried, more fried but by the sun, and now in a thong scares away legions of gorgeous women)

DC (roasted): No…come back…my pretties!

ES: Thanks for the idea, SV. Oh, and Don…

DC: Y…yes?

ES: Whacks with frying pan, stabs with pen, and shoots with gun I am not hot, but I'm not ugly, either! Learn to revise your words, idiot! Next time, I'll chop off your , fry it, and feed it to the dogs!

DC (still crispy, but pales considerably): Okay, okay! whimper

S: Hey, I thought the frying pan, pen, and gun treatment was especially for me!

ES (threateningly glares): Don't be jealous. I'll give you the special treatment right now if I have to!

S: backs away slowly runs away

ES (smiling): Review please!

L: Yeah, what she said…sweatdrop

Vin (still far away): Loren? Lorenn!


	13. Chapter 13

Vincent rose from his hiding spot, numb with disbelief.

'_She…she's on his side? How…? Why…? No…I won't believe it…?'_

"_Why is it so hard to believe? She betrayed you. You see how close and personal Mr. High and Mighty got with her. She's forgotten about you. Face it. She's changed. Even I can feel it."_

'_Shut up, Chaos.'_

"_She has a guest inside of her, one I know quite well. Just as I, Galian, Masker, and Gigas are your guests, I sensed one of our own in her."_

'_You mean…?'_

"_Yes…my comrade, Death, is her companion."_

'_She is now…almost just like me.'_

"_Yes, but I don't think you're on her mind. She has him to think about. He saved her from Hojo, not you."_

'_How did you know Hojo was where Sephiroth was going?'_

"_I could feel the man's name on his mind."_

'_Why didn't you tell me Loren was there with Hojo?'_

"_You know I'm not nice. I don't like her anyway."_

'_So what! You live in me, so I'm the one in control.'_

"_If you lose control of your emotions, I may take over. Take that warning to heart. My _host_."_

Vincent breathed in slowly. He tried to calm his nerves. It served little purpose.

'_You lie. He pinned her. Forced himself upon her.'_

"_She didn't pull away, now did she?"_

'_He's stronger than she is. She couldn't pull away if she wanted to.'_

"_She has his power imbued into her. She can match his strength, if not now outmatch it with the help of Death."_

"_How do you think she found you after all that time of being away from you all? He told her. Who knows what could have gone on while they were alone together all that time?"_

The thought made Vincent pause.

'_How do you know they were together all that time?'_

"_I'm only using common logic. You heard what he said. 'Do not fail me again.' There's several meanings for that."_

'_Shut up.'_

"_If you're so upset, why not just follow them? Follow my advice for once this time."  
_

'_He might harm her. I should…'_

"_You just want to make sure they don't do something you won't like. To just prove me wrong and assure yourself that her 'purity' is still yours for the taking."_

'_You're wrong! I want her to be safe! I won't lose her again!'_

"_Then why didn't you try to stop Sephiroth when he was off guard?"_

'_I…I don't know…'_

The demon laughed inside his head.

"_Well? You're wasting time just sitting here. If you care so much, why are you still in the library? They are probably far from town by now. Get moving."_

Vincent strode purposefully towards the door and left the basement. He gazed at the interior of the mansion, imagining how beautiful it must have been. Shaking the thought off, he exited the mansion. He went to a shopkeeper and asked if he had seen a tall man with silver hair and a woman with black hair pass by. The man shivered at the thought and he explained that he had seen them leave a shop and head toward the mountains. Vincent thanked the man and headed toward the mountains at a double pace. Those mountains were dangerous. She could get hurt…

Cloud and the others had set up camp near the reactor. Cloud sitting on the ground stared at the structure where Sephiroth had fallen into the Mako all that time ago. He sighed.

"It brings back a lot of memories…"

He looked up when he heard footsteps quickly approaching him. It was Yuffie, a worried expression written all over her face.

"Hey, Cloud, have you seen Vincent? He came with us, right?"

Cloud's brows furrowed.

"Yes. As far as I remember. He was with us when we set off to search for Loren again. I didn't know we had upset her _that_ much…"

"Vincent's not here. Do you think he fell off the bridge? Is he dead?"

Cloud gave her a strange look. Since when did she care so much about Vincent? Why was she so worried? Or was she just jealous and desirous of his presence all for her self?

"If he's gone, he's got a good reason to be gone. He's a grown man, Yuffie. He can take care of himself. Don't become another Tifa, with all her worrying."

Yuffie backed off slowly, biting her lip. Cloud turned and saw Tifa standing behind him, fires in her eyes and cracking her knuckles. Cloud paled.

"N-now…Tifa…no need to get upset now…"

Her eye twitched.

"Clouuuddd…"

He nearly leapt from the ground and took off running, Tifa on his tail and shouting curses and profanities. Yuffie looked to the ground.

"Vinnie…"

Like Cloud, Loren looked at her surroundings, taking in the entire large cave she and Sephiroth were to sleep. She remembered fondly that this was the place where she had to fight Materia Keeper, or the 'Materia Bunny', as Yuffie put it. She gazed at the annoying chutes that had confused her until she had finally resorted to the strategy guide. She had never imagined the cave, or the mountains, for that matter, to be so very tall. She felt like an ant…it was a feeling foreign to her. She stared at the spots of green light scattered throughout the room. _'It's so very beautiful…'_ She glanced at Sephiroth who was polishing his sword. His pauldrons and coat (essentially his shirt) were missing, more than likely in his tent. She thought back to the events of how Sephiroth came to know of his creation. She gave a small grin.

"Does this place bring back memories?"

He paused and looked over to her.

"What?"

"Does it bring back memories? The reactor, the death…does it bring back memories?"

He looked back to his sword.

"They were not present in my mind, but now…yes, it does."

"Do they hurt, or do they give you an empty satisfaction?"

The grip on the hilt of the sword tightened.

"It is not empty satisfaction. I found my mother."

"But other than that?"

"Other than that, yes, they admittedly hurt. Knowing I am simply a creation, a perfect creation, and knowing that Cloud defeated me does bother me."

Loren stared at her hands and looked back to him.

"Why has it driven you to such extremes, though? I mean, I would not want to be a creation myself, but I have already been experimented on, so it is not so much a difference. I would not be so upset as to attempt destroying the world."

_Kill her._

Sephiroth had his sword at her throat in an instant.

"I advise you stay silent."

_Kill her._

'_No. Not yet.'_

_KILL HER!_

'_NO!'_

He whirled around to keep his body in control. He almost didn't miss his mark, though. A flash of red appeared on her cheek and though it was a deep cut, she only went back a few inches, using what control she had in her body at that split second. He placed his sword by his tent and looked at Loren. She had already risen and stood near a ledge, wiping the blood off her face with her hand. He stepped over to her and attempted to get a look at the cut but she jumped away from him and landed gracefully.

"Let me heal the cut."

She began walking toward her tent to grab her Cure materia. Sephiroth stopped her, but she smacked his hand away. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward him. Locking one of her arms with one of his, he used his other hand to observe the cut. With her leg, she kicked him hard in the knee and leapt away from him. With a small smirk, he came after her again.

She stared incredulously at this foolish man.

'_This man thinks this is a game! Can he not get the picture that I want to be alone?'_

"_This is Sephiroth. You shouldn't have to even be thinking. He will get his way. Just let him heal you."_

Loren growled at the demon as she strafed to the side to avoid Sephiroth's outreaching arm.

'_No, I will not! I will do this my own way. I do not need his help.'_

"_You're just mad that he cut you. Don't want to scar that pretty face, now do we?"_

'_Shut up! I do not care for the scar. I am in pain. I want to be alone!'_

"_Believe what you will…"_

The demon left her to herself. She managed to avoid Sephiroth again, but it was getting harder. His speed continued to increase as she continued to avoid him. She avoided him once more, but managed to get a kick in on his face. She heard a crack and a muffled growl, but she knew it was over when she almost immediately felt a hand grab her ankle. She was promptly slammed to the ground and pinned by his weight. He grabbed her arms and put them above her head with one hand and with his teeth took the glove off his other hand (yeah, he didn't have a shirt, but he had his gloves; I'm weird okay? Geez, bite me). He placed his hand on her cheek and erased the wound. After healing her, he grabbed his nose and cracked it back into place. With that same amused, superior smirk, he gazed at her.

"There, that wasn't so bad, was it?"

She widened her eyes slightly.

'_He…used…a contraction…'_

The smirk faded a little.

"That will only happen once. My words slipped. We will need to rest if you are to catch up to your companions. Sleep well."

He got off of her and went to his tent. She rose as well and dusted herself off.

'_Why does he bother to heal me? I can heal myself.'_

"_Maybe because you would probably do it wrong."_

'_It is a simple process. All you have to do is say Cure (1) (2) (3) and have your hand over the affected area. Am I correct?'_

"_Not necessarily. You have to have the proper concentration and force to the spell in order for it to work properly. If you do it wrong, then the wound won't heal correctly."_

'_But I can do that.'_

"_He needs for you to save your energy for the trap. His force is almost infinite. He is almost completely one with the Lifestream, so spells are available to him at 'no charge', so he would rather use his own energy than waste yours on a mistake he made."_

Loren nodded.

'_That makes sense. It leaves one less thing to ponder about. Damn him…but, thank you Death.'_

"_It is my pleasure to serve my host."_

Loren crawled inside of her tent and laid down to rest. Slowly, slowly she went to sleep.

Sudden movement jerked Loren from her sleep. Glowing sea green eyes were floating before her in the darkness. His tone was hushed, so something was up.

"Get up. There is an intruder."

Nodding, Loren grabbed her sword and snuck out of her tent. In a cat-like position, she heightened her senses by willing the power of Sephiroth in her to rise. Looking around in the darkness, she sensed a slight rustle in the rocks off to her side, but she knew that it was Sephiroth. She felt him tense, and felt him get ready to spring.

"_Here, let me help you."_

Light filled her eyes.

'_What have you done?'_

"_I have given you night eyes for a short while."_

She saw Sephiroth begin rushing a figure not so far from him. She charged as well and as she ran, she saw the long black hair, the cloak and the gun. She urged herself to run faster.

"Sephiroth, stop!"

She barely reached him in time, jumping in front of Vincent and blocking him from view. Sword aimed at her heart, he faltered.

"Loren?"

"Yes. Do not kill him. Please, do not kill him."

Sephiroth's sword lowered an inch. Loren's breath was shaky.

"Yes."

"He knows now. He cannot live. He will go and tell the others before we can carry it out."

She felt Vincent grab her arm and turn her to him.

"So…you really are on his side…?"

"Vincent, it is not like that…"

"How long have you worked with him?"

"The day before I came to you all in the inn. That does not change how I feel about you, though."

He shook his head.

"So…was Chaos right? Have you given yourself to him?"

Rage almost overflowed inside of her.

"NO!"

"Why…? Why did you join him?"

"I am doing this for you…"

"For me! How is this for me if you let him get so close to you!"

"Because I do not want you to die again!"

"I'd rather die again than see him so intimate with you!"

"Intimate? When was he intimate with me?"

"In the basement against the door!"

"That was not even anything to begin with! You want intimate, I will show you intimate!"

Sauntering over to Sephiroth, she grabbed him by the neck and brought him down for a furious kiss. She brought her body close to his and pressed her chest against his. She felt him stiffen in surprise. As she tore away from him, she heard a scream of pained rage and a loud bang. She felt numb as she stumbled away from Sephiroth, blood covering her clothes at an alarming rate. She clapped a hand over the hole in her abdomen, in a futile attempt to stop the bleeding. She fell to her knees and struggled to focus as everything around her became blurry. She heard words being shouted and whispered hoarsely.

"Oh, God, what have I done?"

"You fool!"

"Loren!"

"Leave here!"

"NO!"

"Be gone…!"

She felt hands holding her up, faintly, but she felt it nonetheless. The screaming was softer this time. Everything was white, but was beginning to turn black.

"Fallen Angel!"

She heard a faint scream…she could feel wind all around her. She was moving fast, fast from the sound of screaming, fast from the sound of pain, fast from life. She could no longer feel anything…no longer hear anything…silence and darkness were the only things to greet her now…she fell into its embrace willingly to escape the pain of mortal chains…she was free of pain…at last…

A/N: This is not the end! Just to let you know. I'm either half way through or ¾ of the way through. And if I'm just psycho like that, only a quarter, but I doubt it. I'm glad I'm this far. Thankies for the reviews. Know that you all are loved. If you all remember Seph's Fallen Angel attack, I'm proud of you. If not, welll…oh well. I really dunno what the final pairings are going to be, but it all depends on what kind of mood I'm in: evil mood or the special 'meh' mood. The special 'meh' mood is just completely random and I usually have my best ideas in my 'meh' mood but it's not easy to be in that mood. If it's the evil mood, then I'd more than likely go with Sephiroth.

L: Yeah, I would hope you wouldn't kill me off.

S: Too abrupt. It must have a good ending.

V: …I agree.

Cloud: Tifa is having a DDR party at her house on Saturday.

ES & L: How does Tifa know about DDR?

C: She saw the game at the mall when we went.

L: You mean she didn't show me everything?

C: No. Err. Right.

L: sigh Anger Veins

Green Chocobo passes by: SIGN: Kiss me, I'm Irish.

L: snaps Ultimate Limit Break: Eternal Darkness!

Chocobo is dragged under by a black portal with hands. Dazed, and held by the hands, it suffers considerable damage and is thrown back aboveground. Now black, the sign on its back has changed.

GC (now BC): SIGN: Victim of Loren R.

BC: goes berserk and starts pecking the heck out of Loren

L: Ooowwww owwwwww!

ES: …No comment. Review please. Uwee hee!


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Hey, guys. Yay, new chapter! Please continue reading, as it makes me so happy and I like to hear the great reviews, as small or long as they are. Note of forewarning: I have never cared for bad reviews. I am okay with constructive criticism and tips like, "This person's a little out of character", or "It feels a little rushed; calm down a bit." but I won't accept reviews that simply criticize. If you only want to criticize, don't review and keep your petty comments to yourself, because I don't care for them. For those who actually enjoy my story, please enjoy and be all 'Wee!' because it makes me smile. Thanks again.

Weapons drawn, everyone rushed to the scene where Vincent lay on the ground, hanging only by a thread of life. Red rushed to his aid and cast Cure 3 on him. Rising to his knees, tears began to cascade down his face. Yuffie looked at him and touched his shoulder.

"Vin…?"

He shrugged her hand off.

"I…shot her…I…didn't mean to…oh, God…"

Cloud knelt down to grab his shoulder. Again, it was shrugged off.

"Where is she? Where is Loren?"

Vincent hesitated.

"He took her…I wanted to help her live…but he took her…"

Tifa furrowed her brows with worry.

"Who's 'he'?"

"Sephiroth."

Cid stamped his foot hard into the ground.

"Okay, start over. How the hell did this all come to happen in the first place?"

Vincent again hesitated.

"I had found her and I had followed her. But I soon noticed that another was following her; Sephiroth. He temporarily disappeared and I caught up to her here and we began to talk. But it escalated into an argument and then Sephiroth came in for the kill. I shot at him once, but that one time, he was in front of Loren and I couldn't see her, so she got a bullet to the stomach when he moved out of the way. I was so angry. Sephiroth and I yelled at each other and then he picked her up and summoned her items to him. He used an attack on me and then flew off with her. It's like he wants her for something. Information, a scheme, something…He probably wants information from her. Damn him…"

He knew he was half-lying to his friends, but he didn't want her to be exiled from the group again. Barret raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well why'd you argue, you foo'?"

Vincent kept his eyes downcast and didn't respond. Cloud closed his eyes and shook his head.

"Your protectiveness and suspicion drowned out any logic, right?"

Vincent startled and sighed. He gave a resigned nod.

"You were suspicious that something…may be going on between them?"

Vincent looked Cloud in the eyes now.

"How…?"

"It's natural to be suspicious. Especially with his power in her and the fact that he followed her."

Vincent nodded again.

"Now he's taken her away. He carried her in his arms, not over his shoulder. He almost treated her like glass. He's taken her away…to be alone with her. He's going to heal her…and I'm not. It's my fault she ended up like this…"

Cloud grabbed him by the shoulders.

"Now you listen to me. None of this is your fault. He moved out of the way. It's that bastard's fault, not yours."

Cait Sith looked away.

'_If anything, it would be hers. She's the one that killed Vincent in the first place, which caused her to leave. Her modesty made her flee from him again, which caused him to follow her again. She knew Sephiroth was in front of her, so she should have moved, but didn't, which caused her to be shot. I still don't trust her…'_

Yuffie inwardly glared.

'_It's her fault Vinnie's like this. Something is always happening to her…she always causes him to be in pain. I still care for her, but then again I hate her for having Vinnie and making him suffer. Why couldn't I steal his heart first?'_

Tifa stood by Cloud's side.

"Yeah. Sephiroth followed her and interfered. The fight could have ended peacefully between you two, but he got in the way and caused her to be shot. It's not your fault."

Knowing the truth, he answered somberly.

"I wish it wasn't…"

The others, confused at his statement, wanted to press on, but relented when they saw his expression, the face of true pain and sorrow.

Sephiroth flew to a cave far into the ocean, far from Vincent, far from where anyone could hurt her. It was bad enough that he had cut her, but for Vincent to blow a hole through her stomach was very bad, enough to make him want to go back and make sure Vincent stayed dead.

Sephiroth placed her on the floor of the cave and removed his gloves. He felt for a pulse but there was none. She was dead. Hissing in anger, he called upon the energy of life and attempted to revive her. He had not used it often in his days as General. After the first try failed, he quickly resorted to a Phoenix Down, but it didn't work. Now worried, he tried reviving her himself again. Focusing all his will and power on his energies, he released the spell upon her. Feeling the power of the spell, he still couldn't help but widen his eyes in slight surprise, as the energy that left his palm was not the usual sea green as his eyes, but a strange blue light. It was blindingly bright, but it had an odd softness to it. The light entered the wound in her stomach and it closed unusually fast. Her breathing returned, albeit it was soft and shallow. She was still unconscious, but she was alive. He would have to be extremely careful, help her around and find food. It wouldn't be too hard, but it would take more time than he desired. He didn't want to leave her alone.

He didn't know why he was feeling so protective, so nervous. He didn't know why he was so mad at Vincent for hurting Loren. _His_ Loren. He froze in shock at his own thoughts. _His Loren?_ What was he thinking, making her his own? This feeling was foreign to him. He heard a drawling snarl.

_You CARE for this creature?_

'_Mother, what are you saying?'_

_This feeling coursing through you, I feel it as well. You care for this lowly life form._

'_How could I care?'_

_This protectiveness, your fear for her safety, it is all because you care for her. She is simply a human. Why care for such a thing?_

'_Do not forget that I am a human as well. Am I a lowly life form as well?'_

The voice of Jenova steadied itself, though it still struggled to retain any calmness.

No, my child. You are a special human, gifted with my blood. You are better than these humans.

'_I was always different. Why could you not control my appearance? Why did I have to look so different from the rest of the children?'_

Obviously, his childhood still affected him, even as an adult.

I could not find you, my child. We were separated and my power could not reach you.

Sephiroth sensed the lie for what it was, but he absorbed it as if it were nothing, though it hurt him for his mother to lie to him, her son.

'_I understand, Mother. So…I care for her?'_

_Yes. Do not let it affect your decisions._

'_It already has, Mother.'_

_How?_

Her voice wavered.

'I am not going to kill her. After we finish our trap, I plan to keep her.'

_And if she resists?_

He paused.

'_She will not.'_

_How can you be so sure?_

'_Because I imagine she cares for me as well.'_

The voice paused.

Very well. Do not let her manipulate you.

Sephiroth smiled.

'_She will not be the one manipulating.'_

The voice spoke no more. Loren stirred from her sleep. Once she opened her eyes, Sephiroth was once again his stoic self. She groaned in pain.

"My head…my stomach…it all hurts…I thought I had died…"

He looked at her. Annoyance crossed his features once.

"You did. Your act was foolish."

She paused and then looked at him with something resembling fear and embarrassment.

"I am sorry. I did not mean…"

She trailed off as she remembered all of the night's events. Sephiroth glanced at her then looked away again.

"Why…did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Kiss me."

She almost smiled as his eyes slightly dilated with the memory.

"What did you expect me to be intimate with? The floor?"

He narrowed his eyes.

"Well…do not do it again."

"You make it sound like you are afraid of it."

"…"

"Are you?"

"…I am not afraid. Never say that I am afraid."

"Understood. You just did not expect it to be with you."

"Right."

She laughed to herself.

"I…I will try…he he…to restrain myself… or should you be telling that to yourself?"

He glared at her menacingly. She bit her lip and averted her eyes.

"Okay, maybe not."

"Your death got to your head."

Loren immediately darkened. She closed her eyes.

"Do not…bring that up…that was quite painful…"

"That is why it is brought up. You must face the pain or it will be ever present."

Loren grimaced.

"I…do not know about that…"

"It is the truth."

"No. The pain will take care of itself."

"Not if you do not aid it."

"It will heal itself, I tell you!"

He grabbed her by the shoulders and squeezed hard enough to make her wince.

"Listen to what I tell you. I have dealt with pain all my life. I would know."

"In case you forgot, I have dealt with pain all of my life as well. I am not a stranger to pain."

"Just try it."

"I would rather go my own way."

He roared in anger.

"You are so stubborn!"

She stared at him.

"You barely figure that out now?"

He stared right back. He threatened to explode, but he stopped himself and turned away.

"You are a fool by running away from your pain."

"Am I?"

"Yes, you are. You should face it. Take it on headfirst. Only then will you get stronger."

"I have taken that method all my life. It is the only reason I have survived up until now. Why can I not take a break from that method and simply hide?"

He turned to her and looked her square in the eye. He thought to back when he was General, when so many looked up to him. Though he never showed it, he felt strong and felt proud that so many idolized him. None of that mattered now, but when he still worked for Shin-ra the one moment he enjoyed the most was the boost of morale he gave his soldiers before rushing into a battle. He looked up toward the ceiling.

"There will always be those who need your strength."

She looked at him earnestly.

"Always?"

He looked back down at her.

"Yes. No matter who you are, there will always be at least one person who needs your strength to help them through a situation, whether it is simple or extremely complex. They will be desirous of your strength, because you are an idol, a friend, family, a mate, or someone simply trying to survive. Even by trying to survive, there are those who will need that strength, so that they too may survive."

"You are quite knowledgeable. How would you know this?"

"I have fought many battles with many people. After a while, such things become simple to see, especially when one must use you for support."

He had never mentioned much about his fighting days when he was in the military, and it surprised her to a degree to hear it. Before she knew it, he was directly in front of her, kneeling so that they could see eye to eye.

"Deal with the pain. Become stronger. Do not quit like so many have done on this planet."

"Did they have a choice? It was either surrender to a more powerful force or be beaten into submission, or quite possibly killed."

"They had the strength to get rid of their oppressors, but disunity and fear kept them in their cage. They act like animals, desperately trying to get free, but always had the freedom to leave if they just took the initiative and fought their way out."

Loren frowned.

"Do you know how seriously out powered the people of this world are by their oppressors? With a simple blink of an eye, thousands could be dead. You, of all people, would know that."

Slowly, Sephiroth nodded.

"They have to wait for someone to do it for them."

"Like I said, do they have a choice?"

Sephiroth rose and took a step back.

"Deal with your pain. Do not run away from it."

Loren closed her eyes and slowly stood. The world around her still swayed, though. She would face her pain. She took a step forward. All of a sudden, the floor was rushing up to meet her, but she never felt the blow, and the ground receded from her face. Her eyes met Sephiroth's and laughed inside at the annoyance in his eyes. His voice was slightly angry.

"You have to be careful."

His gaze narrowed as she smiled at his anger. Her ears picked up a wonderful sound.

"I hear water."

"The ocean."

"I want to see it."

He hesitated.

"Put me down. Lead me there."

He gave in and led her by the arm. He led her to the water and she sighed at the sight of it. She tugged at his grip.

"Please…release me."

He cautiously let her go and she slowly ambled to the water. Upon her feet touching water, she proceeded to fall to her knees. He started for her, agitated upon her foolish choice that she chose to walk, well knowing her weak state, but stopped when he realized that she had fallen to her knees on purpose. She grabbed a fistful of wet sand and let it slip through her fingers. When he took a step toward her, he saw that she was smiling and crying at the same time.

"I remember…the first time I saw the ocean. I was five. I thought it was so beautiful. My cousin tried to kill me by drowning me in those same beautiful waters. And yet, I still found it beautiful. They all had a grudge against me for some reason. There was something wrong with me. I think I was the child of another man, not the man I thought to be my father. My father hated me, my mother hated me for that, and my cousin hated me for being the daughter of a rich family. I guess they had reason for abandoning me. I was a bastard child. Not a true bastard child, but one nonetheless."

He knelt next to her.

"If they left you, that is their loss. With your current strength, you could teach them quite a few lessons. You can show them what they tossed out like garbage."

She saw the strange comment for what it was. He was comforting and complimenting her. She smiled and gave him a warm hug. He didn't return it, but he didn't stiffen up as much as he had before. She pulled away and looked into his eyes. His eyes carried a strange light as he stared back at her. He edged toward her face. She remained still. He still continued to come closer, but she still didn't move. To finish the gap, she moved forward herself and they were brought together in a kiss. It was unlike anything either had ever experienced before. The warmth that they felt, the strange comfort they both felt as Sephiroth took her into his arms and she placed a battle-worn yet still somehow soft hand around his neck. It seemed like two opposites had met and had formed a perfect balance as black hair mixed with silver in a brief moment of respite from the troubles of the world. The balance was met again as vivid sea green eyes met steel gray, both slightly perplexed yet understanding. Both pairs of eyes closed as the two kissed once again. The two opposites, though exactly alike, were oblivious to the world around them, as the waves crashed around them and the wind tousled their hair.

The moment of balance was broken when Loren chuckled softly.

"What?"

"I just realized that I need new clothes."

He looked down at her garments. Indeed she needed new clothes. She had a huge hole in the stomach area of her shirt and blood covered most of her pants. He pondered what had just happened and debated whether he should have stopped himself or not. No, he had enjoyed it. He had no reason to regret what he did. He looked over at her when her head drooped. She smiled faintly.

"I…am a little…sleepy…"

He stood and offered her a hand. She took it gratefully and started walking by herself when she suddenly collapsed to the ground. He moved to her spot quickly and turned her to pick her up when he noticed that a bit of the violet markings that were on her body showed through the hole in her shirt. It was glowing. Eyebrows furrowing, he carried her inside the cave and laid her down.

"Can you hear me? What is happening to you right now?"

A feeble hand reached up for Sephiroth. He grabbed her wrist and put it back down.

"What is happening?"

She sent a telepathic message.

'_Death is fighting someone. She…she is protecting me from someone. A woman…'_

She paused for a second.

'It is your mother. I apologize if it seems deliberately accusatory, but I speak the truth. She is trying to reach inside my mind and possess me. She wants me to attack you so that you can kill me.'

After a few seconds, the marks flared and dimmed down. She took a shaky breath and flinched as if the process of the marks calming down was painful.

'_I was lucky. Death won. I need…rest…No…Death needs its rest…'_

"Alright."

With that, she either passed out or fell asleep quite quickly.

"Death must have exhausted her energies."

After scolding his mother with no response, he soon fell asleep sitting beside Loren. He was her guardian. He had assigned that as his own task now. When she was better, everything would move according to schedule. He would keep her though. That was the only change. The only change…he had to be careful. He couldn't harm the angel. He couldn't harm his angel…

A/N: Hey…if you no like mushies, just tell me. I will tone down a little, I promise. That is, if you want. I know; Seph acted a little strange. A little out of character, okay, maybe a lot, but people change when foreign feelings enter their systems. Hell, look how Loren changed. Then again, she's my character so I can do what I want to her. See, look! Loren appears with a giant waffle cone attached to her head.

L: (flares in anger): Hey, what is with the damn cone?

ES: evil mode: (points behind Loren)

L: (turns and sees a giant crazy six year old who is in need of sugar staring at her eagerly)

ES: (smiles)

S: What the? What is with the cone?

L: Not now, Sephiroth! I am trying not to be devoured, here!

ES: eviler mode: (smiles wider)

S: now covered in sugar is exposed to an army of ants (Smiles) Please. (Body ignites and all ants die).

ES: (narrows eyes)

S: covered in sugar once again and smells a strange smell What is that? ants appear again Heh. (ignites again, but explodes).

ES: TNT in your back and explosive gases in the air…ha ha ha. H-ha ha HA HA HA HA HA!

L: NO! Fiend Inferno!

ES: (Dismisses fire). Heh. Stop.

L: frozen …

ES: (Revives Seph and removes cone and psycho six year old). There. That wasn't so bad, right?

L and S: (eye twitch)

ES: Please review. (takes a breath)

L and S: SUPER INFERNO! (comet that destroys planets hits ES, engulfing her in flames and creating a small shockwave nova that blasts her to the floor)

ES: Damage taken: 159756452. Status: Incinerated. Request: Review.

…PROGRAM TERMINATED…/lol


	15. Chapter 15

"Loren…"

Loren opened her eyes to discover Vincent caressing her hair.

"V…Vin…cent?"

"Yes…I'm here. Don't worry. You're safe now."

She was confused.

"Safe…? How are you here? Shouldn't you be fighting?"

"You're safe. He's gone. He left somewhere, probably to get something."

"How…did you find me?"

He smiled softly.

"Chaos told me. He has a connection with Death."

She paused and thought about Death.

'_Death? Are you alright?'_

There was a brief pause.

"_Yes, I am fine. Thank you for worrying."_

'_How do you think she was able to attack my mind?'_

"_It is probably because of the Jenova cells in you, not to mention the power Sephiroth left in you."_

'_Oh yes…I almost forgot. I must deal with the matter at hand. He has to leave.'_

"_Because he endangered himself by coming here or because you are confused?"_

She growled at Death but stopped when she finally thought about it.

'_At both, really.'_

"_You are beginning to grow fond of Sephiroth, are you not?"_

'_I think I kind of always was. Even in the game, I believed him to be attractive. His eyes always left a strange feeling in me. I always believed him to be misunderstood, that his cause was somewhat justified, though I admit some of his deeds were deplorable. I thought that, when he killed Aeris, I would never forgive him. I confess that I still have not. It is just that…something in me just wants to be near him, and it is not his power.'_

"_So are you dropping Vincent?"_

'_I…I do not know. Vincent has treated me so kindly. But I killed him. He killed me. Sephiroth…he would kill me without a second thought. I am only a tool. And yet…something feels different.'_

"_You do not see it? Are you that blind?"_

'_What?'_

"_You strange woman…you sometimes muddle even me. Sephiroth--"_

"LOREN!"

Loren jolted out of her conversation.

"Yes?"

"Are you alright? You stopped speaking and your eyes glazed over."

Loren nodded.

"Yes, I am fine."

His eyes were filled with sadness.

"I am so sorry."

"For what?"

"For hurting you."

Loren shook her head.

"If anything, you should kill me again. Not only did I kill you, but I betrayed you."

"None of that matters. As long as you are alive and safe. I love you, and I will not lose you."

Loren shut her eyes tight. She thought back to the kisses she shared with Sephiroth, and how she betrayed him in more than one way. What made her feel worse is that she wanted those kisses, not initially, but wanted them nonetheless. Her love was torn between two people; and she couldn't make it go farther one way or another. She froze. Love? Did she really love Sephiroth? Could she love? She couldn't say that she loved him in return when Vincent confessed his love and she can't say that she loves Sephiroth, and yet the word is stuck to both of their names in her head.

"Vincent…"

"Yes?"

"You have to leave. Sephiroth will be back soon. I can feel it. Leave now."

He shook his head.

"No, I won't leave you."

"You have to, unless you want to die."

"No, I won't leave."

She growled at him.

"You stubborn fool! You will leave now or I shall never forgive you!"

"I'll take your safety over your forgiveness."

She sat up. Her hair fell in her face.

"You fool…you are going to die."

"I'd rather die than leave you with him."

"Jealous? Suspicious? Good: you should be. But you have to leave. I will not see you die again."

Vincent stared at her when a low growl met both their ears. Loren shut her eyes painfully.

"No…"

"You…"

Vincent rose, gun in hand.

"I'm taking her. I'm taking her to where she belongs, with me and her friends. You won't stop me Sephiroth."

Muttering low so only he could hear, he said, "After what you did…"

He spoke with clarity.

"You are only leaving with your own broken body."

He drew his sword. Vincent took his battle stance and waited for the first move. Sephiroth moved blindingly fast, leading with a quick slice of his sword, but Vincent evaded and shot several rounds. Missing mostly, Sephiroth blocked the rest with his sword. The play went on for several minutes, Vincent's reloads faster than Loren could register, Sephiroth with now a few minor abrasions. Loren thought to herself, '_this is not right. This simply is not right._' Sephiroth's speed was mainly what was keeping him from getting a bullet. Vincent had several cuts on his arms and face, but he still maintained his speed. Both paused, hate evident on their faces.

Shaking her head solemnly, Loren stood. The marks on her body burned slightly.

'_Death…I am putting an end to this fight. You will help me?'_

"_Of course."_

The marks ignited into a bright glow. Her hair grew even longer, her eyes became feral looking and yellow, the spines near her hairline sprouted, her feet and hands became clawed, she was now in black robes, and she was in the air, levitating.

With speed unknown to her, she placed herself between the two and the marks created a shock wave that knocked both men to the far ends of the cave. Black fire erupted around her and on the ceiling. Closing her eyes, she extended her hands to both men and shot something like an ethereal violet arrow into both of their weapon arms, which temporarily disabled them. Both hid their pain, but it was ill disguised to her.

Baring sharp fangs in a tight grimace, she shut her eyes in anger. Sephiroth and Vincent stared. Her voice was joined by Death's, creating an eerie double voice. The contrast is what created the eerie feeling, her voice hollow and light, whilst Death's was smooth and considerably deeper, not masculine, but not feminine, either.

"You both are fools. I am a fool. This cycle of searching and fighting never ends. If this is what love entails…I do not want it. I have had enough of this love. I have…had enough."

With those final words, she took to the sky, floating across the air upright with her arms crossed at a fast speed. Vincent shouted after her.

"LOREN!"

Sephiroth remained on the ground, impassive. His mind was a jumble of emotions.

'Love? Did she say she loved me? She disrupted my fight. She is gone. She does not want love anymore. I am not a fool. Do I love her? Why am I in so much pain? Why am I pleased and furious at the same time? I have to find her. But she does not want that. It would continue the cycle. But…I have to.'

He stood and grabbed his sword with his good hand. Just as Vincent turned around, Sephiroth took to the sky as well. Vincent cursed.

"Damn…"

He turned into Chaos and flew off. He would follow Sephiroth, but at a distance far enough that he could stay out of the range of Sephiroth's senses.

Loren rested against a tree in the Mideel Forest. She sighed.

'Again I have pushed myself away from open arms…'

"Willingly?"

'No. But it was necessary. If I let it be, one of them could have gotten hurt and the cycle would never end.'

"What makes you think they are not fighting at this moment and what makes you think that they will not come searching for you?"

'I do not know. But I have a feeling I stopped the fight.'

"You know they are fighting for you, right?"

'But I do not want that. I had figured out that Sephiroth has feelings for me, and I knew it would cause trouble. I had to end it.'

"But it will not. They will still search for you. You have just confessed your love for both. It will make Sephiroth's love awaken and spur Vincent's. They will come for you. You are going to have to choose between one of them."

'I know. It is hard.'

"Of course it would be hard."

She stepped away from the tree and floated over to Mideel. She placed her hood on and entered the town. She bought a new black outfit, now more like hard leather armor, and left the town to go relax in the forest once again. She rested up against a tree (she's still in demon form, mind you.) She felt a distinct cold aura and formed an incorporeal barrier, wanting her peace. She felt his hand touch the barrier. The aura flared.

"I wish to speak with you."

"Speak."

"Why do you love me?"

"Why do you love your mother? Why do you love me?"

He paused.

"I cannot explain it."

"Then you have answered your own question."

"You love Vincent as well."

"…Yes."

"I want you to stay with me after we finish the trap."

"You will have killed my friends."

"They would have killed you for aiding me."

"I had no choice."

"You did. You nearly matched my strength. You could have wounded me, warned your friends, and faced me together. But you did not."

"I thought they would never trust me again after killing Vincent with your power."

"You could have tried to make amends."

"I…"

"He was alive again. It was not your fault for killing him in the first place."

"I began all of this. If I had been more careful, the portal to your world would not have opened."

Sephiroth didn't speak after that.

"I do not think I even know what love is. No one has ever described it to me, and I live such a secluded life that I have never seen it."

"You do not have to see it or have it described to you. I believe that you simply know. Describe what you feel."

"Warmth…comfort…safety…joy…sadness…anger…caring…turmoil…I could go on, but that is mainly what I feel when I think of you or him."

"Then you feel it."

Something clicked in Loren's ears. Anger filled her senses and she lost her calm. A scythe appeared in her hands.

"It doesn't matter. If it causes the two people I care most for to fight, then it is a worthless emotion!"

With her heightened speed, she pushed Sephiroth out of the way and swatted at the air. A loud clang was heard and if one had a trained eye, they could see the bullet ricocheting into the trees. She bared her fangs again.

"Enough Vincent!"

She looked forward to find, to her horror, not only Vincent but also the entire group. A quick warning entered her mind as the group prepared for battle.

"You must decide now. Ally with them, or protect Sephiroth."

'I have to help him. I have to protect Sephiroth.'

"You know he is powerful enough to wipe out the entire group single-handedly, right?"

'I am not so sure. Cloud has grown almost as powerful as Sephiroth and his rage for Aeris's death will fuel his strength.'

"I see you have made up your mind. Stay with him. Do not leave him alone. He has no one, unlike Vincent, who has a whole party to be with."

'Have you grown a soft spot for Sephiroth as well?'

"I admire his power, and how he has dealt with his troubles all his life with his head held high."

'How would you know?'

She heard a small laugh.

"I saw into his past while you and he were kissing."

'Oh…'

Sadness and pain filled her thoughts.

"What is it?"

'I do not want to kill them.'

"You do not have to. Incapacitate them. They will know the extent of your power when you start fighting. Just by looking at you, feeling the protective rage in your eyes, they will see and feel your power."

'Must I draw blood?'

"You can simply knock them out, but for those with strong wills, you may have to."

She nodded resolutely.

'Okay.'

She sent a telepathic message to Sephiroth.

'Incapacitate them, but do not kill them.'

'Why?'

'Though they wish you and probably me as well dead, they are still my friends. I will not leave you. But please, do not kill them.'

'We could complete our plan here, you know.'

'I DO NOT WANT THEM DEAD, YOU HEAR ME!'

'DO NOT ORDER ME AROUND LIKE A SERVANT!'

'…I know…but…not here…not today…leave them alive…please…'

'It would be easier this way.'

'Just…please…not today…not here…'

'…Very well.'

The communication ended there, but they glanced over at each other, grim faces on both. They faced the charging front liners, Red XIII, Cid, Cloud, and Tifa, while Yuffie, Cait Sith, Barret, and Vincent unleashed a torrent of ammo and started casting spells.

Setting up her barrier and Sephiroth using his innate energies to set up a barrier of his own, both began their run to the battle, in her case one of the most difficult and heart wrenching battles of her life.

A/N: Yeah, this was kind of short (for me), but I wanted to end it here because good stuff happens next. I can't think right now. I'm getting ready to move, so I'm very, very distracted, plus I'm playing Star Ocean: TTEOT, Tales of Symphonia (again), and FF7 (AGAIN!) almost all at once. And my brother's supposed to be getting a press release for his book soon so that has me all excited and I'm reading Cirque du Freak and Forgotten Realms and playing piano. Sigh , despite how bored I think I am, I actually have way too much to do. Argh! (Stares at Masamune) ooh, pretty blade. Must…steal…

S: NO! That is mine! All mine! My precious…

ES: Obsessed much?

S: (glare) No.

ES: Uh-huh. Sure, I believe you.

S: My precious…

ES: (swipe) Ha ha, it's mine, it's mine!

S: NO! Masamune!

ES: (running in circles) HA HA HA, review please! Catch me!

S: ARRGGHHH!


	16. Chapter 16

She used her agility to scale a tree next to her and crouched on a branch, trying to figure a strategy.

"_Take out the ranged fighters, first."_

'_That hurts.'_

"_Make him last."_

'_Fine.'_

She leaped off the branch, letting the flat of her scythe lead the way. She struck Cait Sith like a baseball and sent him flying into a tree, quickly rendering him out of the fight. She moved on to Yuffie and tried to strike her with the wooden part of her scythe. Yuffie deftly evaded the swipe that would have infinitely knocked her out, but screamed nonetheless.

"Bolt 3!"

A large streak of lightning came searing down to Loren, and though she barely got hit, the bolt sent her flying backwards. She flipped in the air, quickly regaining her composure (Aerial Recovery, anyone?). Yuffie sent her giant shuriken flying Loren's way, but she easily dodged it. She knew the shuriken was returning so she jumped high and landed on a branch softly, nodding knowingly as the shuriken flew beneath her to be caught by Yuffie's quick hands.

"Loren, why are you doing this? I thought you were our friend!"

Yuffie's comment stung Loren hard.

"I am your friend. But I have to protect him!"

Yuffie jumped back to get out of reach of the scythe coming in fast.

"Protect who? Sephiroth? He's our enemy! He's your enemy! We love you!"

Loren had disappeared, but Yuffie felt her presence keenly when she felt the back of Loren's scythe whack her hard on the head, knocking her out.

"He cannot die…not now. I am sorry, Yuffie."

She quickly moved on to Barret, but had to quickly set up her barrier when a rain of bullets fell upon her. Feeling such a torrent hurt her, though the bullets never even came near. She charged forth, leaping behind him and intending to knock him out just as she had done Yuffie. It was not so successful, as Barret turned around, shrugging the blow off as if it were a mere tap.

"You're one sneaky lady, betrayin' us like that. I don't know why I ever trusted you."

"I am not betraying you. He needs me. I need to help him see the truth. I think I can stop him from destroying the planet."

He sent another rain of bullets her way. She flipped around and she surely would have been hit, seeing that her barrier was still shaking. She went to his backside again and kicked out his legs. As he struggled to get back up, she held her scythe over him.

"I still don't trust you, girl."

"You do not have to. You gave me your trust willingly, and it is my burden that I misused that trust. And honestly…I need him as well. Our pasts are alike and he can bring me out of my past. I am sorry, Barret."

She whacked his head hard, like one would when hitting a golf ball. He rolled his eyes up in his head and he too was out cold. She looked around her. Tifa, Red, and Cid were down, some with minor cuts, but mostly unscathed, though she knew everyone would have some pretty painful bruises. Cloud and Vincent were ganging up on Sephiroth, and because of her plea, he was enduring quite an amount of damage. She quickly rushed to his aid and tackled Vincent. He quickly kicked her off of him and pinned her to the ground, gun aimed at her head. He was trembling with pain, rage, and despair. His eyes were glassy. She met his gaze, but simply looking at him was enough to make her weak.

"Why? WHY! WHY HELP HIM? I LOVE YOU!"

She shook her head.

"If you did, you would understand. You are blinded by rage and despair. If you took the time to think, you might have understood my intentions. I want to save your world. I want to save him. And I want to save you all from your endless fighting."

"You are not saving us by being with him!"

"You have no idea. He is clouded from the truth by the despair he felt when he discovered his creation. If he knew, he may change his mind about his mother and I could end Meteor's progression. But…you have no idea."

He still trembled and she kicked him off her. She held her scythe in front of her.

"Or actually…you do, don't you? You know all about Sephiroth's 'creation'. You know who he _really_ is. You know all about…'her'."

Vincent froze.

"Yes…you do. I can see it in your eyes. But then again, you saw it all first hand. You are---"

"ENOUGH!"

He shot at her several times but she strengthened her barrier and let the bullets fly away from her. She smiled.

"Such adamant denial. Are you disgusted that I love both you and him? Well…you no longer have to worry about that. I have to protect him. That is all there is to it. I am going to help him see the truth."

"NO!"

He transformed into Chaos and roared at her. Shaking her head, she let herself go and let Death take over. The scythe fell from her hands and both she and Chaos charged at each other. Clawed hands locked in a grapple that strained both.

"So, Chaos, I see that you are well."

"Well, is that not a statement of the obvious? You are looking striking as usual. It would look so much better if I added a scar or two to that body of yours."

"I cannot let that happen, and though we are friendly rivals, I will obey my host and simply knock you unconscious. I have no desire for bloodshed today."

"You have softened, Death. You used to be so eager to spread your name among many people. Have you lost the taste for your name?"

"No, I am still quite desirous of it, but not today; you really are not worth my time."

Growling in amusement as if he was used to those words, he pushed back from her. He shot his wings forward and a rush of cutting wind was sent her way. She blocked but got some cuts on her arms. He then summoned a skull from the Abyss, which engulfed her and caused her much pain in its dark depths. Being as quick as he could, he was by her instantly, slamming her head to the ground repeatedly. He picked her up and attempted to squish her with his arms, but she used a violet ray from her finger to singe his flesh. She leaped far from his reach and prepared for her attacks. She wouldn't let this one defeat her, so she mustered all the strength in her body, due to the fact that the world was swaying dangerously around her. She tasted blood in her mouth and felt it running down the side of her head. _'So much for bloodshed.'_ Smiling, she shoved her hand forward and twisted her hand at the same time. A dark swirling mist spewed forth and encircled Chaos. She muttered 'Dark Wind' and it began to spin faster than the eye could see, giving Chaos many tiny cuts. While the wind cut him, she rushed forward and sent an uppercut into his jaw. Following almost immediately, she kicked him in the stomach and dug her nails into his arms, attaching herself to him as he flew back, which caused him to roar out. She pivoted her weight down, causing his head to smack hard against the forest floor. As his body began to scrape across the ground she unlatched her nails and jumped back from him. He must have surely been knocked out. But as the dirt settled, she saw that he had risen. Giving a low snarl, he took a step forward. She tensed, but relaxed as she saw him collapse back to the ground.

She turned to find Sephiroth and Cloud still fighting but saw it end when Sephiroth hit Cloud on a pressure point. The young blonde collapsed to the ground. Sephiroth raised his sword, but stopped when he saw Loren staring at him, a tight grimace on her face. Her eyes were almost pure black, but were returning to their demonic feline yellow. He grudgingly sheathed his sword. Still retaining her demon form, she began setting the unconscious bodies against trees, hoping they would be remotely comfortable when they woke up, save for the pain, more than likely being a headache. Saving Vincent for last, she picked him up and set him against a tree next to Yuffie, smiling. Indeed, though there was a great age distance, the two seemed well suited for each other, an almost perfect ying-yang. It was no wonder Yuffie was so attracted to him. She shook off the underlying thoughts in her head.

'_I have made my decision. I cannot go back now. Heh, Sephiroth is closer to my age, anyhow.'_

She grasped Vincent's claw hand. She muttered low, a soft smile playing on her lips.

"I shall miss your comforting smiles, Vincent. Thank you, for such wonderful companionship. You shall not be soon forgotten."

She stood and strode over to Sephiroth. He looked at her, passive, and was scrupulous in not letting what he truly felt show—guilt. He did not know why he felt so, but it was there. Mayhap he was sorry that he didn't kill everyone. Or maybe…he was oddly guilty because he saw her pain in harming her friends. No, he couldn't let his softness for her control the rest of his emotions.

Loren looked up at him, realizing that he wasn't so much taller than her, only a few inches at most. She was as tall as Cid, a towering 5'8". She felt tall and probably was tall for a female. Most were usually around 5'4"-5'6", so maybe that helped her feel out of place.

"You are strong for a woman."

"What does that mean?"

"You are physically stronger than most women and you laid low your friends and the one you care for."

She shook her head.

"No, I did not."

"What?"

"The one I care for. I did not lay him low."

"He is still conscious?"

"No…I mean that the one I care for is not unconscious. He is standing beside me."

Sephiroth slightly raised his eyebrows.

"Do you not care for Vincent?"

"I care for him…but…I cannot love him. Not in that way. I…love you."

Sephiroth closed his eyes.

"Hmph. We need to leave before they gain consciousness, because there is no guarantee that I will not kill them this time."

She nodded and grabbed the scythe. It disappeared into nothingness as she reverted to her human form. The robes turned into her clothes, which had somehow switched with her new outfit so that she had it on. She began to walk from the scene but noticed that he was not following her. When she turned, she saw that Sephiroth was staring at Vincent with a strange expression on his face. It seemed to be a mix of hatred, sadness, and uneasiness. Either he was having second thoughts about killing him, or…

"Sephiroth?"

He snapped out of his gaze. He returned to a passive state.

"What?"

"What was that about just now?"

"…It was nothing."

"Tell me."

"I shall tell you nothing."

She grabbed his shirt (what little of it there is). She stared hard at him.

"Please. Just tell me. At least remove some of the burden on your shoulders."

"I do not have any burden."

"Do not lie. I can see it in your eyes."

His eyebrow twitched, as if it were his sign of agitation.

"I will make it simple. I feel strange around him."

"Why?"

"Do not ask why. I do not know."

She put a hand to her chin in thought. She muttered so only she could hear.

"He may know, but does not even realize it. If that is true, then the man I saw seven years ago…he must have been my true father. I had that same feeling…I have to find a way back. But…not now. Later."

She turned from him.

"We should go."

He stared at her back. Her shoulders were tense, and even her back muscles were taut. He knew something was wrong, but did he dare ask? Yes, he decided. If she could squeeze answers out of him, he could do it to her.

"Now you answer me. What is on your mind?"

Her shoulders slumped.

"My father…I know who he is."

"I thought he left you before you were born."

"I had seen a man seven years ago…he had given me a strange feeling inside, like I should know him or like I should get to know him. He must have felt it too, because he had looked at me strangely with a fear and warmth radiating off of him, and kept walking."

"Why did you just discover this now if it happened seven years ago?"

The truth would have to come out. _'He is going to hate me for this…'_ she thought.

"The feeling you have when around Vincent…it is the same as the one I had when I had walked by that man."

"Are you saying that I am related to Vincent?"

"…Yes."

"Ludicrous! He barely looks past the age of 30!"

"He is older than you think. He was 27 years old 30 years ago, and he and Lucrecia were together one night…she had gotten pregnant."

He narrowed his eyes.

"Lucrecia gave the unborn child to the experimentation of Hojo. Vincent tried to stop her and Hojo, but Hojo stopped him instead by blowing off his arm. He experimented on him as well, and locked him in a coffin for 30 years. Almost a week after Vincent had been locked away, you were born, and you were as Hojo put it 'the perfect specimen'."

Anger was pouring from Sephiroth's eyes. He had read something along those lines in Hojo's journal many years ago and remembered when Hojo was so joyful when he said that 'that pesky Turk is out of the way'. He remembered the loud gunshot and related it to the golden claw-arm on Vincent. He seethed.

"YOU LIE!"

He backhanded her hard, sending her flying to the ground. She stood without a word and looked at him square in the eye. He could see that there was nothing but truth in her eyes. He clenched his teeth hard enough to make them shatter.

"You lie…Jenova is my mother."

"I am sorry, but I speak only the cold, brutal truth. Jenova is no Ancient. She is 'the calamity from the skies' as the Ancients called her."

Sephiroth turned his face away from her, oblivious to that last comment.

"Lucrecia is not my mother. Vincent is not my…father. I only have my mother, Jenova."

"You can call her that, but you only have her cells. You are Lucrecia's flesh and blood. You are Vincent's flesh and blood."

He turned his back to her now, digesting all of the new information. His muscles tightened.

"And you love _both_ me and Vincent? And you knew all along that he was my…biological parent? What is wrong with you?"

"I did not think I would end up falling in love with you. I had been set on hating you for all eternity, remember?"

"No, I will not accept this! I will not allow you to love both! Love one or love neither! He is NOT my father! Lucrecia is NOT my mother!"

She shook her head.

"Do you really think you were born from a deformed creature with tentacles for arms? You look more human than that. Be in denial all you want. You know the truth now. It is up to you whether you accept it or not. It does not matter to me."

It actually did, but she wasn't about to let Sephiroth know that.

"Why…did Mother lie to me?"

"She probably knew you had a lot of power. She could have probably just wanted to use you to kill the last Ancient," she grimaced at the thought of Aeris's death, "and to help her destroy the world."

"How…did this happen? This has to be…this has to be a lie."

"No…it is not. I am sorry. It would have come out either way. I had planned to tell you later."

He rounded on her.

"Since when have you known?"

"Well before I even opened the gate to your world."

"You never bothered to tell me!"

"I knew you would be in denial, even more so than you are now. It would not have made a difference."

_Kill her, my son. She speaks lies to turn you against me._

'_Mother?'_

_Yes, it is I. Will you choose her over me? Will you believe her petty lies?_

'_Why do I feel so drawn to Vincent, as if I should have known him a long time ago, like I had wanted to befriend him, to try and be like a son to him?'_

_He is your biological parent. _

'_Then…'_

_I am still your mother._

'_Lucrecia…was not my mother?'_

_No. She simply housed my child._

'_How is that possible?'_

_It is hard to explain._

'_You are not human, like me. I am among those you call "pathetic humans".'_

_You have my DNA. You are mine._

'_As are thousands of others. They are yours only through injections, as am I. Lucrecia was not mentioned in the experimentation document for nothing. It was mentioned that she and Vincent had spent a night together and she had become pregnant.'_

_YOU ARE MINE UNDERSTAND! KILL HER!_

He felt a strange urgency to send his sword through her skull, but he resisted. Despite his efforts, Jenova was far stronger. He raised his sword to her head, shaking violently. She stared at him and smiled.

"She is controlling you…right?"

"I have…no…power…over…my actions!"

"Now you know what I felt like all that time ago when you took control of me."

"…Move…!"

"You are strong enough to stop her. Do it. Stop her or kill me. Do it."

He used more of his strength, but Jenova upped hers. The shaking continued to grow in violence and the grimace on his face was almost frightening.

"You can win. Do it. DO IT!"

"Aaaarrrggghhh!"

He swung his sword around so quickly that she barely had time to duck and she knew she would have been decapitated when she saw the tree next to her falling to the ground. His breathing was heavy and his sword-hand trembled. He swallowed hard and dropped his sword. Loren narrowed her eyes at his pale complexion. He was perspiring.

"Sephiroth…are you all right?"

He straightened. He tried to calm his breathing.

"Yes…I am fine."

He stooped to pick up his sword when he let out a rush of air and hit the ground hard. He was trembling quite fiercely. Loren dropped to a knee and felt his forehead. He had a fever.

'_He is burning. I have to get him some ice. Water, ice, whichever. He needs something to lower his temperature.'_

"_Just take him to the ocean shore."_

'_He needs clean water. The towns will not accept him. He is too well known. A lake, perhaps?'_

"_There are plenty of rivers."_

'_I need a secure place. I do not want to have to fight monsters while he is ill.'_

"_You are strong enough to kill monsters on your own."_

'_I cannot guard him and fight at the same time. What can I say; I am protective.'_

"_There is always Lucrecia's cave."_

'…_What?'_

"_Her cave. Underneath a waterfall and basically in a giant lake. It provides security and provides clean water."_

'_How do you know it is clean?'_

"_Why not find out?"_

'_Lucrecia's cave…'_

She hoisted up Sephiroth, but knew she wouldn't get far carrying his weight.

'_How am I going to do this? I will lose energy very quickly and I have to treat him as soon as possible. Can you help me?'_

"_I cannot provide you with limitless stamina. Even if I did, it would still take far longer than you desire."_

'_What other abilities do you have?'_

"_I can make a portal for you."_

'_Yes, that will be perfect. Can you make one for me?'_

"_That is easier said than done. I cannot make a portal if there is an obstacle in the area of choice, in this case a waterfall. If I made one, I would have to do it in the lake and you would have to swim to the cave."_

Loren thought about this for a few moments.

'…_Okay. Do it. I should be able to haul his weight for that short distance.'_

"…"

She saw a black portal ripping through the air around her and she held him against her shoulder even tighter. She heard a faint voice.

"…L…Loren…?"

She looked to her side. Vincent was stirring.

"Sleep, Vincent. Sleep."

He became unconscious again, as if hearing her every word. She braced herself and stepped through the portal. She knew the water would try her strength more than walking, but she would be closer to Lucrecia's cave than she could ever hope for in a day or two. As soon as she felt the insistent tug of the portal, she sucked in her breath, held it, and before she knew it, she was in the water.

A/N: Hellooo 00'! Yay, I hope I am not boring my readers. Thanks for sticking with me this far and hope you're entertained. If not…well, I can do crazy stuff, or really stupid stuff. I can roll around on the floor like I'm on fire or something.

L: I can make that reality.

ES: Don't push it.

So yeah, thanks. Crazy bean fish monkey radish. Fonkeys (funkies) fish monkeys! My very own species. Moos go cow! Lol, I'm quite amused. "Blah," as the chicken says, "is a tame form of saying everything on your mind at once." Yes, blah. Flooberfish. I'm hyper for some reason and the Squawks go chicken. Yeah…um…ok…ummm…RUN AWAY!


	17. Chapter 17

Cloud opened his eyes slowly, trying to not agitate the throbbing in his head.

"What…happened?"

Tifa crawled over to him.

"Hey…are you alright?"

"Yeah…but what happened?"

"We fought Loren and Sephiroth."

"Oh…I forgot…I couldn't believe she'd turn like that."

He grabbed his neck and rolled his head on his shoulders. Several cracking noises were heard.

"How is everyone?"

"Everyone has a headache."

He rose slowly.

"I'd better see how everyone is doing."

He knelt by Barret as the large man rubbed his head, a grimace on his face.

"Hey, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, ya foo', just get yourself over there and check on the others."

Smiling, Cloud patted the man's shoulder and looked at the little cat, Cait Sith.

"Hey Cait, are you okay?"

Cait stood and limped over to his mog.

"Yeah, just a little sore in the back."

He shook his head. Cloud walked over to Cid, who spit on the ground, cursing his mouth off.

"Cid?"

"That damn &#$!#$ " +-/$#&$&)$#(#(:" ? #()"  &$))!"

"Calm down, Cid. You'll be fine."

Cid sputtered as he glared at Cloud, holding his head and gut.

"You think I'm fine, you f#&$ idiot?"

"No, I said you'd _be_ fine. I didn't say you _are_ fine."

"Humph."

Cloud then strode to Red XIII who was lying calmly with his paws crossed under him.

"You look comfortable, Red."

"I am actually in quite a lot of pain, but relaxing is what lessens the pain for me."

"Good strategy."

"Why thank you."

"VINNIE!"

Cloud twisted around to Yuffie's scream. She was shaking Vincent and sobbing uncontrollably. Everyone's attention was on her as Cloud rushed to her.

"Yuffie, what's wrong?"

"He's dead, he's dead!"

Cloud looked at Vincent. The man had many small cuts and a rather large lump on his head. His clothes were disheveled, but he didn't seem to be dead. Despite her shaking, he could see Vincent's chest rising and falling slowly as it always did. He grabbed Yuffie's wrists. She fought against him wildly.

"Let go! He's dead!"

He held her wrists tightly and shook his head.

"He's not dead, Yuffie. He's alive. Stop shaking him and look at his chest."

Yuffie calmed a bit and looked at Vincent. She sighed.

"Oh…"

Cloud held out his hand after letting Yuffie go and muttered 'Full Cure'. The cuts healed instantly and the bump went down like a deflated balloon. Vincent slowly opened his eyes.

"She's gone…right?"

"Yes."

Vincent held his face in his hands.

"No…please…don't say anything, Loren…"

"What are you hoping she doesn't say?"

"Nothing. Don't worry about it."

Cloud shrugged. He turned to the rest of the group.

"Alright, guys. Let's relax a little bit and then we'll be on the move."

Tifa spoke up.

"Those guys were insanely strong."

Cloud darkened.

"I know. Sephiroth was holding back for some reason."

Vincent nodded.

"They could have killed us, quite easily, but they didn't."

Cloud looked toward Vincent.

"I know. The question is…why?"

Cait Sith bounded up to Cloud. His eyes were pleading.

"Let's not fight them again. We aren't ready for them."

Cloud darkened even more.

"I know…"

Barret slapped his gun arm into his hand.

"I don't know 'bout that girl. She kept sayin' somethin' 'bout helping him see the truth and stoppin' him from destroyin' the planet. She said she wasn't betrayin' us and that he needs her and stuff. It sounds true, but I'm not sure on trustin' her."

"She said similar things to me," said Vincent.

Yuffie nodded.

"She told me she needed to protect him."

Red was consumed in thought. He then spoke.

"She could be the cause of his not killing us. If what she says is true, then she could still consider us her friends. If that were not the case, we would more than likely be dead."

Cloud thought about the statement. It made sense, but some things still confused him.

"Yeah, but what did she mean by 'helping him see the truth'?"

Vincent dropped his head.

"Lucrecia."

All eyes turned to him.

"Lucrecia?"

"Remember what I told you when we first met? That Lucrecia was Sephiroth's mother?"

All nodded and then realization dawned on them. Cloud reeled.

"She's going to tell him that? Is she suicidal? He'll kill her!"

Vincent shook his head.

"He loves her. He wouldn't kill her unless she tried to kill him."

Eyes nearly fell out of their sockets. Jaws dropped open and others went rigid. Vincent smiles.

"Yes, that's right. He loves her."

Cid laughed.

"So ye're caught in a love triangle? Ha-ha-ha!"

Vincent shook his head again.

"No, she made a decision. She's staying with him."

Many nearly toppled over in disbelief. Vincent muttered low.

"She…loves my son…"

Red caught his little comment, but kept it to himself, as much in disbelief as he was. Yuffie perked up.

"What did ya say, Vinnie?"

He shook his head.

"Nothing. It's nothing."

Cloud put his chin in his hand.

"I wonder where they are now…"

Loren, holding Sephiroth, struggled to stay above water. With the added weight of water, his armor, and the fact that he was almost pure muscle, she struggled to keep him above water as well. She steeled herself and pushed herself forward to the side of the waterfall. With the waterfall churning the waters, she had a little trouble moving. Eventually, after sinking a few times, she reached the edge. She skirted the waterfall and made it inside the cave though she did receive a good deal of pressure from the falling water. She eased her way through the calm waters of the cave. When she reached land, she deposited Sephiroth and then climbed up herself. She looked around the cave; it was much bigger than she had imagined it to be. As she browsed around, she heard a slight groan. She knew it was Sephiroth and tore a piece of her long sleeve off to dab his head. He still had a fever and would take substantial rest to break it. When he drifted to unconsciousness again, Loren rose and took a step toward the light at the end of the cave. A voice permeated the silent cavern.

"Who are you? Leave me be."

"My name is Loren. I am…acquainted with Vincent Valentine."

A figure appeared from the light, a beautiful woman in a white lab coat: Lucrecia.

"You know Vincent?"

"Yes. I know him quite well, and I know you, too…Lucrecia."

She took a tentative step forward.

"If that is so…do you know Sephiroth?"

Loren smiled and nodded.

"Yes, I do. I am in love with him."

Loren surprised herself on how she could admit it so openly. The woman observed Loren with scrutiny.

"Really?"

"Yes. As a matter of fact, he is ill right now. He has a fever. He is here if you want to see him."

The woman froze.

"My son…is here?"

Loren went to Sephiroth, hoisted him over her shoulder and carried him to Lucrecia. The woman was trembling. Loren carefully placed him on the floor. Lucrecia practically fell to the floor to see him.

"That's…my son…that's my son…"

She looked at Loren.

"You brought him here…why?"

"I told him the truth. I wanted him to see you. He had a fever and I did not want to fight while taking care of him. This was the ideal place to be."

Lucrecia nodded.

"This is the right place to be. I'll take good care of him."

Loren smiled and sat by Sephiroth.

"I know you will."

A day passed by slowly. And then another. Vincent was tired of being in this forest. He imagined Loren was chasing Sephiroth around the world if she had already told him. He had lost her forever. Lucrecia…Loren…he lost both. He suddenly felt a desire to see Lucrecia. He missed her. He stood and went over to Cloud.

"Cloud?"

"Yes, Vincent?"

"Can we go see Lucrecia?"

"Lucrecia?"

"Yes. I need to see her."

"Er…okay. Give us a few hours."

He went and spoke to Cid, probably about getting the Highwind and getting some gold chocobos.

"Okay."

He went back to his tree and remained tense. He had to see her. He just had to.

A day passed with no progress. On the next day near midnight, his fever broke. All three in the cave breathed easier. Lucrecia stroked her son's hair.

"How did he get a fever?"

"I imagine it was the cause of a mental clash with Jenova."

The woman's hand stopped.

"Jenova?"

"Yes…he was trying not to kill me because Jenova was ordering him to against his will."

"The poor boy…"

"I know. Do not sympathy him, though. I do not think he is the type that sits well with sympathy or compassion. He was not pleased when I asked him to spare my old companions."

"Spare them?"

"Yes, we fought my old comrades. He is a remarkable fighter, with much strength. He could have killed them without breaking a sweat."

The woman smiled grimly.

"I would figure as much."

The night passed and morning. Near morning's end, a soft groan reached their ears. Sephiroth slowly opened his eyes. A grimace crossed his features.

"Where am I?"

Loren smiled.

"You are in a safe place."

"What happened?"

"You caught a fever."

"Me?"

Loren almost burst out laughing.

"You are human. A fever is not above you."

He looked around and saw Lucrecia. He was instantly wary.

"Who are you?"

Pain flashed in Lucrecia's eyes.

"I'm a friend."

He looked to Loren.

"Who is she?"

"You had better get up."

She was glad his sword was still near where she had initially placed him. He began to sit up, but hissed in pain and began to fall back down when Loren grabbed his head and pushed him up. She had him lean on her shoulder. He shifted uncomfortably but did not refuse the help. His eyes shifted to her.

"Who is she?"

Loren looked to Lucrecia. The woman smiled.

"Sephiroth?"

He looked to Lucrecia.

"I…am Lucrecia. Do you know me?"

Sephiroth went rigid.

"You are Lucrecia? You look young."

"I am like Vincent. I stopped aging."

He narrowed his eyes and furrowed his eyebrows.

"So…you are…my mother."

Knowing her limits, Lucrecia simply smiled.

"Yes…I am."

He darkened.

"I feel drawn to you…I always thought Jenova was my mother. I still find it hard to believe."

Lucrecia smiled.

"I'm sorry I was never there for you. Hojo placed me in here. For some reason, I can't leave. I regret that I never saw you grow up and become a man."

Sephiroth narrowed his eyes even further, so much so that it seemed as if his eyes were closed. He rose and picked Lucrecia up. Lucrecia, surprised at his action, had no time to react. He led her to the end of the tunnel where the waterfall blocked its view. He looked at her expectantly. Loren was almost behind them now.

"Go on. Go through."

Unafraid, she placed her hand in front of her and set out to touch the water, but there was a slight shimmer and she was stunned, sending her a few steps backward. Sephiroth quickly caught her and gave in. He walked her back to the cave and sat on the floor.

"So I see that you tell the truth."

"Yes, I would not lie to you."

"How have you been able to survive this long without food and water?"

"Hojo put me here to suffer for whatever twisted reason he had and made it to where I no longer required food to survive. I was afraid at first, but when a month went by, I saw my curse."

Anger flashed in Sephiroth's eyes.

"Hojo is dead. I killed him."

Lucrecia didn't seem to take to much pleasure in that fact.

"I am glad Hojo can hurt no one else, but I don't like it that you killed him. He should have suffered for years as I have."

Loren raised her eyebrows.

"You do not seem the type to say such things. I am surprised."

Sephiroth was growing dark again. Lucrecia was filled with worry.

"What's wrong?"

"Why did you give me to experimentation?"

"I thought I would be able to see you after you were born, but Hojo took you away right after you had been born. I was so upset."

"I could have been a normal child…"

"I'm so sorry…you can kill me if it will get rid of your distress. I would willingly sacrifice myself for your happiness."

Sephiroth shook his head.

"No…I will not kill my mother."

Lucrecia lit up.

"You accept the fact that I am your mother?"

"…Yes."

Loren quipped.

"Reluctantly, and almost fearfully, but yes."

Sephiroth looked ready to pounce on her and rip her to shreds. She smiled innocently.

"I'm accurate, aren't I?"

He raised an eyebrow at her. She knew the reason for his apprehension.

"I feel like relaxing, letting everything go. I feel safe here, and I'm going to exploit that feeling to the fullest."

Indeed, Sephiroth felt that way too, but he wouldn't let his speech slip. He hesitated before speaking.

"Loren…?"

"Yes?"

"About what you said in the forest…the feeling is mutual."

Loren nearly choked on herself. She smiled.

"…Wow. I…don't know what to say."

"You do not have to say anything. Just accept it."

Loren lost the strength to speak. She couldn't even move to give him a hug. She wondered why she hadn't reacted so strongly as she did now with Sephiroth than when Vincent confessed his love for her back then. Lucrecia looked from Sephiroth to Loren and back.

"What's going on?"

Sephiroth mouthed it to her. Seemingly, saying that he loved her was a strange concept, so he put it in any other words or said nothing at all. Lucrecia clapped her hands in delight.

"How wonderful! I'm so happy for you, Sephiroth! And I'm so happy for you, too, Loren!"

Loren could only smile. Sephiroth mouthed something else to Lucrecia. She nodded happily and turned around. In one quick motion, he grabbed Loren, bringing her to him and drawing her in for a kiss. It wasn't gentle as it had been before, but rather demanding, and, ultimately, binding. She was his and vise versa. Just feeling his presence so near her made Loren dizzy. It must have had the same effect on him, for when he pulled away, his breathing was quicker and heavier, though still soft. There was a distinct sparkle in his eyes as he stared at her. She smiled softly, moving closer to rest on his shoulder. He gave no outward response, but she could feel him smiling inside. The hours passed.

Vincent drew near Lucrecia's cave, and for some reason, the need to be there continued to grow stronger. His legs itched to get moving to see her. As the chocobos got closer to the waterfall, he nudged his chocobo along faster. The group lined up after Vincent as he dismounted and walked to the opening to the cave. He waited at the edge for everyone else. He then began his walk to see Lucrecia. As he neared the mouth of the cave, he was stunned by the sounds of laughter. He hurried along and saw that not only was Lucrecia conversing with Loren, but also was on the floor telling stories to both her and Sephiroth. Lucrecia had a huge smile on her face, as did Loren, and he could see the amused serenity in Sephiroth's shoulders. Sensing his presence Lucrecia looked up, smiling wider, if that was possible. The group was directly behind him when she spoke. Her words nearly knocked the group to the floor.

"Vincent! Look, our son! He's here with me. We've been talking for a long time now. He's accepted the fact that I'm his mother! He understands! Come, Vincent! Join us!"

Even for Vincent, her words rocked him to the core. Sephiroth talking, understanding, accepting? It was all too much. Sephiroth turned to regard Vincent, his gaze flickering to Loren to gauge her reaction. He stood slowly and began walking toward Vincent. With nothing but his pants and his belt, he seemed far less dangerous than he normally was, but it was a risk Vincent was not willing to take by relaxing. Sephiroth had one hand in his pocket, his walk non-aggressive but quite casual. He stopped ten strides from Vincent. There was a gleam in his eye as he stared Vincent down. He finally spoke.

"Hello, father."

A/N: Hello! Yay, family crazy junkness! I dunno, just felt a need to do a whole reunites mama, dad, and son moment. Lol, I'm weird. And bored and weird and crazy fish lemon lime monkeys. Err, yeah. Psychotic Sprite Funkies, anyone? I'm thinking of writing a fanfic for Castlevania, but I'm not so sure; the first one I did was getting so flamed that I had to delete it for fear of frying my computer and for sheer despair of being so doggedly flamed. I just think my character had an attitude problem and I unwittingly named her after a LotR character. Argh, either I'll die of sleeping myself to death or insanity (you know how it is: you lose enough sleep, you start seeing weird stuff all over the place random wall on fire, I'm looking at you). Wow, I'm distracted. I'm drifting off into space, here. I'll be okay when I move, 'cause I'll be working out and without a computer. I'm going to need my rest for violin. Violin…violin…violin…okay. I'll be going now. Review please. TTFN. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz………………………………………………


	18. Chapter 18

A/N: Okay, this chap is nearly all convo. So you are warned.

Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII or its characters. I own Loren. No sue. Yay.

Vincent stood stock-still, his gaze locked with Sephiroth's.

"Hello, father."

The two simply stared at each other, trying to see which one would speak first. Cloud broke the silence.

"Father? Vincent, what's going on?"

Sephiroth smiled.

"Yes, father. Why not go ahead and tell them?"

"Stop it, Sephiroth!"

"Do you not like being called 'father'?"

"I…am undeserving of that title."

"Humph. Indeed you are."

Loren stood behind Sephiroth.

"Sephiroth…please…"

"I want to know. He knew all these years but did not do a damn thing about it. You are even worse than I am."

Vincent looked away.

"I…"

"What? Can you not find the words to speak? Are you that ashamed?"

"I was locked away in a coffin in the Shinra mansion your entire life! How could I possibly have done anything, Sephiroth? Explain that to me!"

There was pain in his voice. The smile on Sephiroth's face slowly melted.

"So both of you…were locked away?"

"Yes…I tried to stop Hojo from getting his hands on you, but he shot me and locked me up in the coffin. It was my sin that I let you endure the life you have known and it was my sin that Lucrecia was locked away as well."

"Why are they _your_ sins?"

"Because I let it all happen. If I had been stronger, I could have prevented Lucrecia's plight and yours."

Sephiroth's hand twitched, as if he desired to put a comforting hand on his shoulder, but that was all.

"You did not have to be strong. You at least tried. I respect that."

"…"

Loren could not meet the eyes of the group, much less Vincent. Cloud spoke up again.

"Why didn't you two kill us?"

Sephiroth smirked.

"That was her doing. I advised killing you all, but she said otherwise. You are lucky that she was your companion, or I would have surely slain all of you."

Cloud rolled his eyes.

"Well, that's nice to know."

Red padded up to Loren and raised his paw. She took it tentatively.

"I have no idea what your motives are, seeing as that you are quite unpredictable, but you are good at heart. I know you could have easily killed us and we have shunned you before, but you spared us and helped him at the same time. I respect you, Loren."

He pulled his paw away and stood by the group again. Sephiroth stared at the ground. His fist clenched.

"I have to stop this. Jenova has lied to me all this time, using me for her own whims. Has everything I have done been for the wrong reason…?"

Loren shook her head.

"No. Not everything. But anything that you have done was for the right reason at the time, so it is excusable. At least, I think it is. Either way, you can fix it."

Sephiroth nodded.

"Yes…I have to stop her. She will die at the end of my blade."

Tifa stood confused.

"How, if she's inside you?"

"I have a feeling that that can change. She is an Ancient, so---"

"She is not an Ancient!"

Sephiroth turned to his mother. She was nearly trembling with anger.

"Lucrecia…?"

"I researched their files. They were mistaken when they named her an Ancient. The president probably just wanted anything close to an Ancient in his grubby hands and took her without a second thought. They all lied. Jenova is just a creature that fell from the sky 2000 years ago!"

Since they were near the opening of the tunnel, there was a wall Sephiroth could reach, so he punched it. Several bits of stone flew from the impact. He grabbed his head and shook as if he were crying. Cloud shook his head as if trying to get something out. He had seen this once before at the reactor five years ago. That was when Sephiroth had begun to question his creation.

"Jenova…Gast…Hojo…Argh, damn you all!"

Loren was by him instantly, trying to bring him to the center of the cave with the help of Vincent and Lucrecia. He trudged along, still holding his head. No one in the room had ever seen Sephiroth in such a sorry state. Cloud had seen him freak out like this before, but not to the point that he needed help to walk. Sephiroth's eyes were wide with anger and his hair fell in his face (A/N: am I the only one that sees this like an anime?), trembling. He screamed a wordless scream. The group still at the mouth of the cave stood in shock at his sudden change of cold and calm to sad and broken. Loren and Lucrecia held him while Vincent crouched next to him, saying words to calm him down. He even put a light hand on his shoulder. Sephiroth eventually calmed down and pulled away from them, shaking in anger.

"That damn monster…she will die."

Loren nodded in agreement. She whispered something in Sephiroth's ear. He looked at her incredulously.

"Are you serious?"

She nodded.

"This idea is insane. It has been so long since…"

"Make it a first time. It never really happened before. See how it feels."

"…"

He stood and walked over to the group. They got a little nervous, but held their ground. Sephiroth turned his head and held out his hand, his other hand in his pocket. They stared at his hand, as if expecting it to shoot magic at them.

"Help me. Join me and help me be rid of her. I shall cease to attempt killing you all…and I will help you all if you need it."

All jaws nearly fell to the floor. Cloud was the most skeptical.

"Why should I believe you? You should be able to take Jenova yourself, shouldn't you?"

"I should, but I must be cautious. She may take the power she's given me and leave me about as strong as one of you. I am going to need as much help as I can."

"And you're asking for _our _help?"

Sephiroth pointed to Loren.

"It was her idea."

Tifa stepped forward.

"If you want our help, then you have to apologize for everything you've done to us, like taking our hometown and loved ones."

Loren nodded slightly.

"I…I…am sorry…for killing your loved ones and for wronging you…"

He seemed to be having trouble saying it. Tifa smiled.

"Okay, that's all I need. I'll help you as much as I possibly can."

Cloud narrowed his eyes.

"What about Aeris?"

Sephiroth closed his eyes. He lowered his hand.

"Yes, the Ancient…Jenova had ordered me to kill her. I apologize for that too. She did not deserve death; I could see that as she closed her eyes for the last time. She was innocent, pure. I regret that event."

Something warm flowed through him and made him breathe in. Somehow, he knew that the Ancient had accepted his apology and gave her agreement to help during the fight with Jenova. Everything left his mind at the moment; he was enjoying the warmth that coursed through him and he smiled a genuine smile. He suddenly knew her name.

"She's…accepted me…thank you…Aeris…"

Everyone's eyes bugged out. Cloud whispered.

"He hasn't spoken like that since five years ago…"

Loren spoke into Sephiroth's ear.

"They all have accepted you. Just relax a bit. They won't kill you if you speak like a normal person."

He narrowed his eyes.

"Then you have to speak normally as well."

"Okay."

"I'm simply talking normally. What is so wrong about that?"

Yuffie stammered.

"Well…it's just that…"

"You've never heard me speak like this before. It's understandable."

Barret snorted.

"I guess even though you were tryin' to destroy the planet an' all, you ain't so bad. I'll give ya all the ass-kicking power I have, as long as we save Marlene an' the planet."

Loren suddenly remembered.

"Sephiroth?"

"What?"

"What about Meteor?"

Everyone's eyes were on him as he contemplated the situation. He nodded slightly.

"It will be a simple process. All we have to do is destroy the Black Materia."

Everyone started slightly.

"Well, come on, let's get this over with!"

"Jenova won't let me summon the Black Materia forth."

The group grunted their disappointment in unison.

"Damn Jenova!" one of them yelled.

As the group conversed amongst themselves, Loren pulled Vincent away and began talking with him. Sephiroth donned his armor and the rest of his clothing and held his sword at his side, always wary of what she and Vincent were doing. He almost started for them when he gave her a hug and she returned it, but stopped when he saw her leave him and begin walking towards him. Vincent had turned for Lucrecia. Loren stopped in front of Sephiroth, a knowing smile on her face.

"Now, now, no need to be jealous. I was just telling him that I was sorry and that I would always be by his son's side."

Sephiroth averted his eyes.

"Okay…"

She placed a hand on his shoulder.

"It's alright. I have made up my mind, remember? I love you. I do not believe anything can change that."

He nodded quietly. He looked toward the old lovers.

"Those people are my father and mother…I find it hard to believe."

"Still?"

"Yes…"

"Well, now that everyone knows, there's no way that they could so simply abandon you."

"It's happened before…"

"Professor Gast does not count. He's just a scientist."

"A scientist I greatly respected."

"Okay, you win on that part. But he didn't leave you intentionally. The Lifestream was ready for him, so he was taken."

"That sounds like something that pure-hearted Ancient Aeris would say."

"Yeah, I know. But it's the truth."

His small smile fell back to a frown.

"It is time. She must die. We should leave for the Northern Crater soon."

Loren agreed solemnly. Sephiroth, knowing he hadn't gained their full trust and respect yet, paused in front of them, getting their attention with a simple wave of his hand.

"If I may so request, can we leave for Northern Crater soon? Jenova's tie to me is lessened there for some reason and I can make her leave my body so we can end her. Afterwards, we can destroy the Black Materia. Do you all agree with me?"

After a few glances, everyone nodded and turned to leave. Sephiroth looked back at his mother. He drew his sword.

"Hold on."

He went to the end of the tunnel and stopped, focusing his energies. Turning to the side suddenly, he shoved his sword into the stone. Sparks flew and even after the sword had finished going through the stone, a slight crackle was still heard. Smiling, he took his sword out of the wall and began walking back to Lucrecia. Cloud gave him a befuddled look.

"What was that all about?"

Sephiroth gave no reply and kept walking. He offered his hand to Lucrecia. Blinking several times, she took it and let him lead her to the end of the tunnel. He nodded toward the entrance.

"Go on. Touch it."

She extended her hand slowly, still knowing that she would be repelled. To her shock, her hand passed right through and felt the water on her hands. Tears filled her eyes. Sephiroth's smile strengthened.

"You're free now…mother."

Lucrecia burst into tears and held him close. He slowly returned the affectionate gesture, still smiling.

"You're free…"

"Free…oh, Sephiroth, thank you!"

Cloud and co. were astonished.

"Wow…that has to be the nicest thing you've ever done."

"She's my mother. It is expected."

He looked back to her.

"I would like it if you stayed here just a little longer, at least until my fight with Jenova is over."

She nodded, smiling tearfully. Loren grabbed his arm.

"Hey, this isn't just your fight. It's our fight, too."

She waved her arm across the group behind her.

"We'll finish this together."

Everyone agreed with her and left the cave, getting on their chocobos and to the airship away from the water. This would all end at Northern Crater. Sephiroth tightened his fist with determination as he flew across the water. He'd end it all…

A/N: Okay, I admit Seph has strayed from his original attitude and now it may seem kinda cheesy with the whole 'yay mommy' thing, but meh, I'm a girl, what can I say? I like drastic changes in stories and motherly love. Lol. It goes back to action after this and then…yeah. I'm writing another fanfic but that one's a secret and there's another secret coming along with this story. If I've bored you so far, have no worry that is soon to be fixed. Not much more conversations after this, though I think there's still some room for one or two. Hey, thanks for reading this far, I'm surprised how long this thing really is, somewhere near 80-90 or even near 100 pages. Total über yayness! That's like the size of a small book! Hee, hee! (Does victory dance) I feel special! Please inform me **KINDLY** if you are displeased with the changes I have made in the personalities of any of the characters or the story in general. _But don't rant on about why is this wrong and this and this and this and ms. High and Mighty and blah blah blah. I don't care for criticism. Just tell me if you don't like the change or not and try to explain why without being all mean._ So yeah, thanks for bein' there and blah blah blah. Lol, I'm just feelin' lazy. Please review! BLAH!


	19. Chapter 19

A/N: Hello! I am happy! I have lots of reviews! Omg, it's so cool it's not even funny! Neko-Mitsuko, you are so cool, I have to give you a bag of materia shaped (and sized and colored) pastries, which have a filling which is characteristic of its color (red- strawberry or cherry…hmm, I could go on…etc.)! Or materia-loaded muffins. Either way, you need materia because you're cool. Hmm…or a life-size Masamune. Meh. Please enjoy, my beloved readers!

"It's quiet."

"Really? I didn't notice."

"Liar."

"What? I really didn't."

"Hmm…you just don't notice, do you?"

"…"

"Sephiroth."

"What?"

"You heard me."

Sephiroth averted her gaze.

"Sephiroth."

"I'm used to it. I've been alone for a very long time. Such things are oblivious to me."

Loren smiled grimly and put a hand on his arm.

"Don't worry. I'm here now. We're all here. Together."

"Though some are not exactly comfortable with my presence."

Loren shook her head. It was true; most of the group gave him strange looks and were tense, as if they were expecting him to attack at any moment. Loren had attempted several times to make them relax, but they were still wary.

"Well, don't let that get to you."

"Did I ever say that it did?"

"Well…sigh, fine. You confuse me sometimes."

Sephiroth smirked as she gave a mock pout and put and arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. Involuntarily, Loren turned a curious shade of red.

"I'm supposed to be. I have to keep you on edge, always trying to predict my next action. Besides, you amuse me when you're irked."

Loren glared at him and punched his arm as he laughed at her. A number of the members turned to see the two conversing so easily, some shaking their heads and looking away, the others in open awe at how much the feared Sephiroth had relaxed.

They were on the open area of the airship, watching the world pass under them. They had been traveling for at least an hour now and the atmosphere had been oddly silent, as smooth as ice, the only noises heard the air and the loud engines of the airship. Although the group had agreed to help, they still didn't trust Sephiroth. They had been chasing him around for nearly a year; it was expected that they didn't trust the man who had planned to destroy their planet and, of course, every living thing on it. It would take a very long time to completely accept him, and even longer for the scars he created to heal.

Sephiroth stood beside Loren and held the rail, overlooking the landscape below. He smiled as she calmed down and set her off again as he placed a gloved hand over her face and pushed her back. It was comical watching her stumble around, trying to balance herself with the movements of the ship and quickly sidestepped as she used her imbalance and the ship's movement to send her barreling towards him. He caught her before she hit the rail and held her to him, laughing. She hit his chest and relaxed in his arms.

'_Sephiroth?'_

He stood stock still as he heard the voice enter his mind.

'_You hear me, right?'_

"_Yes. Who are you? What do you want?"_

'_No need to be rude. But then again, I think I deserve that for entering your mind without permission.'_

"_Answer me. Who are you?"_

'_Hee hee, okay okay calm down. I'm--'_

"Sephiroth."

"Yes?"

"What's the matter?"

"Nothing. Someone was speaking to me."

"Do you know who it is?"

"No. I don't recognize her voice."

"_Her_?"

"Yes. A female. I've never heard her voice before."

Loren thought for a while. She shook her head.

"I'm not sure. Either that was the planet speaking to you, Jenova pretending to be a friendly entity, or…"

Sephiroth waited for her to answer.

"Well?"

She frowned and shook her head.

"I'm really not sure. My best guess is Jenova."

'_I am not that wretched thing!'_

Sephiroth slightly raised his eyebrows.

"She doesn't like you referring to her as Jenova. I don't think she's very fond of her."

"Humph. Are you sure she's not Jenova?"

'_NO! I hate that creature, she ruined everything!'_

"I'm pretty sure she's not Jenova. She wouldn't talk so badly about herself."

Loren took a breath and raised an eyebrow.

"Well, does this person or thing have a name?"

'_I'm not a thing, you! I'm a person. And yes I have a name.'_

"Yes. She has a name. And she's a person."

"Sigh Okay, well what's your name? Or should I call you Ghost?"

There was a slight pause, but cheery laughter resounded in Sephiroth's head after that.

'_No. Don't be silly. My name is--'_

Suddenly the ship lurched and Sephiroth held on to Loren as he held on to the rail. Cloud had a similar grip on Tifa and Barret was hanging on tightly to the rail. Red was using his body to hold Yuffie to the railing as she started turning greener than she already was. Vincent was looking around, more alert to his surroundings than most, one hand on the rail keeping him steady. Cait Sith was flailing wildly, his oversized hands not able to grip the rail. The poor cat flew off his moogle and was quickly approaching the open sky. Loren wrenched away from Sephiroth and with speed faster than she could normally accomplish, she caught little Cait's gloved hand. He cried out in protest, but held on to her with the other hand. She pulled him in close. He made a sound resembling a weak whimper and said 'I'm sorry' softly a few times. She smiled lightly and put him back on his moogle. He looked away.

"I'm sorry I've been treating you so cruddy. You really are a good person, aren't you?"

Loren smiled again.

"It all depends on how you see it. I _did_ do some pretty bad stuff. And I apologize for knocking you out."

"I'm just a robot remember? I can't feel pain."

"Right. I'm sorry anyway."

"It's okay. You have your reasons."

Sephiroth gave Loren a look.

"Now isn't the time for apologies. We have bigger problems."

A gigantic, deep, mournful roar rang through the sky. Loren's eyes widened slightly. She remembered this. Sephiroth nodded at her recognition.

"_Much_ bigger problems."

She looked to Cloud.

"How much materia have you mastered?"

"Wha?"

"Simple question, Cloud. How much?"

"Umm, fire, bolt, ice, quake, Shiva, Bahamut ZERO, a few HP plusses…I could go on."

"Do you have Ultima or some high end spells and Alls?"

"Yeah. Comet, Ultima, Destruct, All, Mime…"

"Do you have Barrier, Time and high end healing?"

"Yes. Why are you asking this?"

"You're going to need it. A lot. Make sure you have some turbo ethers."

Another loud roar met their ears.

"Okay. What the hell _is_ that?"

Sephiroth smiled. Black filled their vision.

"That would be our enemy, Cloud."

Loren nodded.

"Ultimate WEAPON."

Cloud and co. looked at her. Tifa frowned in thought.

"Hey, that sounds familiar. Ultimate WEAPON…?"

Barret waved his arms in the air in irritation.

"Woman, don't you remember? It's that big-a$ black thing that attacked Mideel!"

Tifa's jaw dropped.

"When Cloud was sick? I remember!"

Cloud shook his head in silent annoyance. Loren nodded.

"Have you even bothered with Ruby or Emerald WEAPON yet? I know you already helped end Diamond and Sapphire brought its own doom."

"No."

"Right. You're not even level 99…"

Tifa looked confused.

"Huh? 'Level 99'?"

"Oh…uh, nothing."

Sephiroth took his fighting stance.

"No time. It's coming!"

Loren hunched slightly and drew Fiend's Lament. She held it as an assassin would hold her dagger, the flat end parallel to her forearm, held out behind her at an angle, her knees slightly bent, legs spread, and her other arm held out in front of her. Sephiroth looked at her. She looked serious, but there was a light in her eyes, as if she were going to enjoy this fight. He smiled. She looked at him out of the corners of her eyes.

"What?"

"You've been waiting for a fight like this, haven't you?"

She looked down for a moment, smiled a little and nodded.

"I've always wondered what it would be like to fight a WEAPON. Now I'll get my chance."

He nodded and looked to the giant creature before them. Ultima WEAPON was absolutely H-U-G-E. It roared again and it almost immediately began charging up for an attack. Cloud looked startled.

"…!"

Loren looked over at Cloud, noticing his expression. He looked back at her and nodded at the creature.

"How the hell do you fight this thing? You seem to know more than any of us do on this WEAPON, so tell us!"

She shook her head.

"I don't know much on it, except for its name. Just keep to the age-old strategy of casting Barrier, Regen, and Haste and _watch out_ for its Shadow Flare! It will hurt you, and badly!"

The group nodded and began readying their spells. Something dawned on Loren. She looked over to Barret, Tifa, Yuffie, Red XIII, Cait Sith, Cid, and Vincent. They all had their ultimate WEAPONs. All except Cloud. Why hadn't she gotten his first? He stood in his battle stance holding the Ragnarok in all its glory. She nodded.

"Cloud!"

"What?"

"I'm asking if we can follow Ultimate WEAPON until we destroy it."

"What for? Don't we have other things to do?"

"Trust me, you're gonna want to destroy it!"

Everyone nodded hesitantly.

"Alright."

Ultimate WEAPON unleashed its first attack, casting Quake2 on the group. It was as if they were getting suffocated by rocks. Other than that, everyone was alright. Everyone launched into their own attack, but somehow it still had its sequential order, as Cloud, naturally led first, followed by Tifa, Barret, Cid, Yuffie, Red, Vincent, Sephiroth and then Loren. The creature roared again, but this time in anger and pain. It slashed at Loren with unnatural accuracy and precision and she flew backwards. Pain filled her senses, but she ignored it and did a reversal in the air, landing with a dull thud on the floor. She held her side as it began to grow warm with blood, and in a show of defiance, licked the blood off her hand, smiling wickedly. She along with everyone else, attacked, Cloud unleashing Comet, Yuffie miming him, Tifa casting Regen on everyone, Barret casting Barrier, and everyone else attacking, some attacking with their materia 4X Cut. Ultimate WEAPON quickly backed off and flew away. Loren started.

"Come on! We have to follow it! This is what I meant by following!"

Cid ran to the door and punched the intercom with his fist.

"Hey, get this big boat turned and follow that creature!"

A fuzzy voice reached his ears.

"Sir, have you lost your mind!"

He bit down on his cigarette.

"Don't question me, you &$#! idiot! Just Get! This! Thing! Turned!"

"Y-yes sir!"

The airship, despite its size, made a remarkably sharp turn and began to follow Ultimate WEAPON. Loren stood pensively as her wound healed.

'_Hmm…considering how strong they are, they have to be at least level 65 or above.'_

She grimaced as she held her side. That was going to be a nasty bruise later on. Ultimate WEAPON kept making several turns and finally hovered over a town. They crashed into it again and fought it once more. Like last time, it flew off when it sustained enough damage. They followed it and confronted it at least five more times, the heroes not hurt too badly, not like WEAPON. It almost seemed like it was slowing each time it ran away. Loren saw the critical point, the final fight. It finally stopped near Cosmo Canyon hovering like a slowly deflating, deformed blimp. Loren was making all sorts of realizations today.

'_Strange, I feel like I've done this before. Shouldn't I already have defeated Ultimate WEAPON, Ruby, and Emerald?'_

"_What is the matter?"_

'_I should have done this already. Unless…oohhh…'_

"_What?"_

'_This isn't my first file. It's my second file. In the first one, I had everything mastered; the only thing missing was Sephiroth's defeat in the center of the planet. My second file was lacking in all that. Cloud was missing Ultima WEAPON, the WEAPONs alive, materia unmastered…it was the bane of all obsessive Final Fantasy players.'_

"_I want to ask you something."_

'_What?'_

"_Are you leaving when this is all over?"_

'…'

"_Loren?"_

She was finding it hard to answer Death.

'_I'm not sure. I want to find my father. I want to show my 'family' what they lost.'_

"_Is that all? Your father left you. He does not deserve your presence. Your family…if they had not left you out in the streets, you would not be the person you are today. You would not be as strong."_

'_Heh, I almost hate it when you're right.'_

"_I usually am."_

'_Heh-heh.'_

"_Besides, I know you would be hard-pressed to leave Sephiroth. You love him. He loves you. I would bet on it that you cannot be away from him for more than a day."_

'_I am NOT _that _attached! But yes, being away from him for an extended period of time would start to bother me. But that would be years or months. Just like anybody else.'_

Sephiroth grabbed Loren's arm.

"Are you ready?"

"Yes. Hold on."

Loren got Cloud and co. together.

"Alright. Who has the Enemy Skills materia?"

Yuffie raised her hand almost nervously.

"Why?"

"You are going to be the one that kills Ultimate WEAPON."

"Wh-a-a-a-t!

"Don't worry; it won't be that bad. Just hit it with a good spell. You'll be alright. Or a Limit Break…"

Yuffie clenched her fist and launched herself into the air.

"Alright! You can count on me!"

Red XIII looked down at his home. His fur bristled and he growled warningly.

"Should that WEAPON decide to decimate my town, I shall be the one who destroys it."

Loren nodded agreeably and looked at the large thing. Why would a WEAPON that was supposed to protect the planet try to harm it? Sephiroth must have sensed her thoughts and shook his head.

"It assumes that all humans on the planet are harmful. It wishes to eliminate danger."

"Danger, huh? I…oh, what's the use?"

"What?"

"I just don't see why the planet would create something that would destroy it."

"Remember, humans didn't originally live here. We descended from the Cetra and the Cetra were nomads."

"I didn't come from the Cetra, Sephiroth. My world still debates whether we were created by a condescending god or if we descended from some damn monkeys."

Sephiroth seemed somewhat taken aback.

"I didn't know your world thought so lowly of their god."

She shrugged.

"That's just me. I'm not for a god, or gods for that matter, but neither do I believe in evolution."

Sephiroth bordered on confusion.

"Then what do you believe in?"

"I…I never thought of it much. It's like asking who or what created the universe. Science says we came from chimpanzees, and religious zealots all over the world say God was the creator. I decided to accept neither and the thought stays away from me as long as I say I believe in myself."

"You…are a strange one…you really are."

"Good. That's the way I want it to be. Now, are we going to kill this thing or what?"

Sephiroth smiled and assumed his battle stance. Loren got ready to fight, and almost as if on cue, the airship rammed into Ultimate WEAPON. The battle began anew and continued as it had before, except that every once in a while Red would scan it, checking its health. Yuffie was really getting into the fight, doing all sorts of acrobatic maneuvers but making sure she got back on the ship safely. Vincent was completely focused, leaping around on WEAPON's body, almost ghostlike. Cloud would deliver really strong blows to its head and arms, while Tifa would cast spells. Cait was a particular subject of attack for WEAPON, so Cait got to use his Slots quite a few times. Cid got the Highwind to launch dozens of missiles into WEAPON's body, and Barret unleashed barrage upon barrage of bullets into its large body. Sephiroth and Loren almost seemed to be dancing, sometimes alone, sometimes together. He would glide around on balanced sure legs while Loren would make several fast, light-footed jumps. Loren laughed to herself.

'_I must seem like a bothersome flea.'_

Red scanned again and he leapt toward Yuffie while making the announcement, even though it was obvious that WEAPON was near its end.

"Everyone stop attacking! Yuffie, deliver the final blow!"

"Alright!"

She let go of her pent up energy, using her Limit Break, Doom of the Living. In an interesting show of violet lights, she attacked WEAPON continuously, making sure she got in all the damage she could. In a final cry of rage, it retaliated with Shadow Flare. Yuffie flew backwards, screaming in pain. The yellow materia in her weapon flashed brightly, signifying that she had learned the skill. Vincent sprinted forward and caught Yuffie before she hit the ground. The poor girl was already unconscious, and was radiating heat, smoke like plumes rising from her body. Loren started for her, but Sephiroth reached her first, healing her completely. Loren took in the sight of Vincent and Yuffie together. They really did look good together. Too bad that Vincent had Lucrecia. Tifa strode up to Loren and pushed her. _Hard_. Caught unawares, Loren slammed against the metal railing, which she quickly backed away from. Tifa's eyes were alight in anger.

"You knew that Yuffie was going to get hurt! You had her kill Ultimate WEAPON so that she could get hit as its final counterattack! You deceitful monster!"

"Tifa…I had a good reason to do that."

Cloud looked at Tifa. Her eyes were burning and her hands were shaking with barely-contained rage. This wasn't going to be good. Once she was like this there was nothing they could do save for heal Loren after she was done. He knew that Tifa was really close to Yuffie, a mix between motherly and sisterly love, despite all the thieving and such that Yuffie had done. Cloud got ready to get into the middle of the fight, though it was completely one-sided. Tifa became insanely strong when she was mad.

"Yeah, I bet you had a good reason. You probably had some hidden agenda, as always. Probably because she had kissed Vincent when you came back to the inn, right? Yes, Yuffie told me about that. You seemed really mad when she did that. You probably wanted some sort of stupid vengeance, right?"

The group looked at Vincent and Yuffie, save for Loren and Tifa. Loren's eyes were downcast and Tifa was staring straight at Loren.

"Tifa, it's not like that. I let that go a long while back, back when I was at the mansion. I had Yuffie do it beca--"

"_Don't lie to me!_"

Not unexpectedly, Tifa launched her fist into Loren's face sending her flying, due to the rage behind the blow. It was much harder than she expected, with her eyes full of stars. She was going off the rail, far beyond it, actually. She closed her eyes completely, feeling the air rush past her face.

'_Death…'_

"_I am way ahead of you."_

Suddenly the air stopped.

"Oh no, you don't!"

Her eyes snapping open, Loren moved in a blur and caught Tifa as she was jumping out to meet her. She flew them back to the ship, her anger dominating for a few mere seconds. She had a hold of Tifa's shoulder and head, her grip stronger than it should have been. Though she had had Death's help, her eyes were sea-green, like Sephiroth's. Said man stared at her openly.

"_Look, Tifa_! Look at her weapon! You see that shiny little yellow rock? She learned Shadow Flare, so if that damn WEAPON were here right now, she could use it against it! If you had had the Enemy Skills materia, I would have made _you_ do it. If it was Cloud, Cloud would do it. If it were a f&$#! moogle, I would make him do it! Get that through your skull! I have no grudges against Yuffie, or any of you for that matter! So just let up!"

Tifa stopped struggling and slumped in defeat. She knew Loren was right. The green in Loren's eyes faded a bit, so it was still green but not glowing.

'_I haven't used the reserves of Sephiroth's power in a long time.'_

"_You are not tiring with me, are you?"_

'_No! I do feel like I'm overusing you, though.'_

She heard a somewhat warm laugh.

"_You forget. My 'services', my power, is yours as long as I can continue to draw power from you."_

'_Why have I never felt it?'_

"_Because I draw a minimal amount at a time. If I were to draw large amounts, you would be weak and could possibly die. Vincent has three demons to draw from him, if they drew even as much as I draw from you, he would show signs of weakness."_

'_Oh…'_

Loren heard Death laugh and suddenly a wave of something inexplicable knocked her to her knees. As she looked up, shaking, she saw that Sephiroth was in the same state as her, on his knees and shaking. Cloud had fallen on his butt, a look of surprise and dazedness on his features. Sephiroth was trying to discern what would create such a reaction.

"_Sephiroth."_

'…'

"_Come on, don't ignore me. Please?"_

'_Are you the one that caused this?'_

"_Yes. Trying to talk to more than one person is hard, you know."_

Sephiroth heard Loren's voice in his head now.

'_Wait a minute. I can hear Sephiroth and I can hear you. What's going on? Who are you?'_

There was a brief pause.

"_Cloud? Can you hear me, too?"_

Cloud's eyes widened.

'…_Wh…how…?'_

It suddenly dawned on Loren who this mystery person was. Both Loren and Cloud spoke at the same time.

"…Aeris?"

A/N: Hello! Yes, this is strange. It's okay though. Strange is good. Very very good. I shall be all grr and yayness. Mwa ha hah ha hah! Erm clears throat right. Yeah, I'm going to move. Again. Luckily, that means I'll have more time to type because I have my own computer back home. I'm just using the school library. But yay, I'm very happy because my violin skills have improved. Ah…symphony here I come (in 5 years) happy tear. You all are wonderful; keep reviewing you wonderful people! YAYYAYYAYYAYYAYYAYYAYYAYYAY! Erm…yes. Mwahaha.


	20. Chapter 20

Loren shook her head in disbelief as the three slowly stood from their positions.

"How is this possible?"

Aeris's voice sounded confused.

"_Don't ask. I don't know how I pulled it off myself."_

Cloud grasped his head.

"Aeris…how…why? I'm so glad to hear your voice."

Her voice grew warm and it made all three---Sephiroth, Loren and Cloud---feel comfortable and happy.

"_I'm glad, too."_

Sephiroth chose to be the person not shocked and asked his question first.

"Why are you communicating with us now?"

Aeris laughed.

"_Ever the one to get to the point. I just had to warn you all. The planet told me what you're going to do, and you have to be really careful. Jenova will more than likely take your power away from you and put it into herself. When that happens, she will become her true self and be more powerful than you can imagine."_

The three looked at each other. Loren's brows furrowed.

"_True_ self?"

"Yes. You all are going to really have to work together to get her down. You're probably going to have to make some sort of combined attack between all of you."

Loren smirked.

"Yes, let's all combine our powers in some sort of super jumbo attack with perfect timing."

"_Well you come up with the way to kill her then!"_

"Now, now, I was just saying that's going to be harder than it seems. Does the attack have to be physical or magical?"

"I would advise magical, because her defenses against your weapons will be high."

Loren nodded.

"Alright, that works."

"Just don't use Demi, okay? She'll have a very good defense against that."

"We'll keep that in mind."

"_Sephiroth."_

He looked up from the ground as if she were there.

"Yes?"

"_You most of all have to be careful. She'll steal your strength and she'll more than likely come after you due to your 'treachery'."_

"Hmm…as much as I dislike the idea of being weak, I'll remember that."

Cloud scratched the back of his head.

"This is so weird."

"_You're weird, too, Cloud."_

He chuckled softly and scratched his head again. The rest of the group stared on in shocked confusion. Loren walked over to the railing, sighing.

"I wish you could be here with us, Aeris."

"But I am here. I've always been here, watching over and protecting you all. I'd never leave you guys."

Loren nodded, smiling slightly.

"That's right. Sorry."

"Don't apologize."

Something shining below caught Loren's attention. She smiled.

"Cloud, come over here."

The blonde strode easily to her.

"Yeah?"

"Look down there."

He peered over the edge cautiously and scanned the ground until the shiny thing caught his eye, too. He looked at Loren. Somehow, she could hear his thoughts.

'_Is that really…?'_

"_Yes, sir."_

'_How did you…?'_

"_Magic."_

He gave a shadow of a grin, gave Loren a sound kiss on the cheek, and without a word, leaped off the airship. The group shouted their surprise and fear and ran to the edge of the ship. Sephiroth in particular looked ready to leap after the blonde and shake him up a bit. Aeris was laughing still.

"_He's as crazy as ever."_

Loren leaned against the railing, holding the cheek Cloud kissed her on. She was smiling softly.

"He wouldn't be Cloud otherwise."

She noticed Sephiroth staring at her with a scrutinizing gaze. She laughed.

"Don't get jealous, you moron."

"Why are you all red?"

"Well, excuse my embarrassment. It's not every day I get a random kiss for doing something to help someone."

He gave a resigned 'hmph' and she smiled at his attitude, grabbing his hand. She was slightly peeved that his gloves were in the way. She gently peeled the glove off, feeling him watching her and when it was off she proceeded to lock her hand with his. His hands were pale, paler than hers, due to lack of sun, but they were smooth and flawless. His fingers flexed.

"Come on, why don't we go down there like pros?"

Asking for Death's power, she leaped off, still holding Sephiroth's hand. The two plummeted down. While they made their descent, she felt eyes on her, Vincent's. She projected her thoughts to him.

"_Vincent, why are you looking down after me?" _

'_What? Loren…'_

"_Why are you looking down after me?"_

'_I'm making sure you're safe.'_

"_Oh."_

'_Take care of my son.'_

"_Have no doubt of that."_

She activated Death's power and they glided the last ten feet, their boots touching the ground lightly. She knew he was lying, but didn't want to press the issue further. The last part she knew was no lie and indeed she would take care of him. She looked to Cloud and saw him holding up his Ultima Blade.

"So how does it feel?"

"What?"

"How does it feel? The blade."

"Oh, it's great!"

"Good. I'm glad to hear it."

"Thanks for having us go after WEAPON! I really needed this."

The nearly transparent blade shone brightly in the daylight, almost seeming white. Loren thought of the interesting effect the health level of the wielder had on the blade.

"If only I could show you what else it does…"

"Why can't you show me?"

"Well…you'd have to get seriously injured for that."

"Okay, I'd rather not know."

"I thought so."

She felt the airship land behind her, as she nearly flew into Cloud. She noticed that Yuffie was now awake and was being supported by Vincent. The group jumped out of the airship and joined Cloud. A worried Tifa quickly smacked said man over the head.

"You idiot, what were you thinking jumping out of an airship more than 500 feet off the ground?"

"I'm alive, aren't I?"

She looked about to pounce him, but refrained when Barret put a hand on her shoulder. Cloud twirled his sword in the air.

"To show how able I am to jump off airships and be strong, here, take the sword."

Tifa looked confused.

"Go on. Hold it. Pick it up."

She grabbed the hilt of the sword and nearly had her arm yanked out of its socket as her arm plummeted to the ground. She yelped in surprise.

"Good god, this thing is heavy!"

Barret rolled his eyes.

"It can't be that heavy!"

As he took it from her hands, his eyes widened.

"Damn, spikey, you on 'roids?"

Cloud laughed. The attention of his comrades was full now.

"Is it really that heavy?"

"Come on, let me see!"

"Outta my way, &$# !"

"Oh, gawd, I can't even lift it!"

"Yer tiny, it's natural fer you not to be able to pick it up."

"Hey, you wanna say that again? Bring it on, old man!"

"I am _not_ old!"

"Better hitch up your trousers, cuz I'm comin' at you with all I got!"

"Ahh, son of a &$#!!!"

Everyone was laughing and pushing each other around, so none except Loren and Sephiroth noticed the soft voice that tinkled at the corner of their mind.

"_Please don't die…"_

With that, they knew she was gone, gone until the time came. Loren noticed the group had quieted and were looking expectantly at the three of them.

"What?"

"Come on, out with it. What did she tell you?"

Loren sighed.

"She said that we have to be careful because Jenova will absorb Sephiroth's power and put it in herself, making her become her true self. With that having happened, we'll have to create a combination attack between the lot of us because she'll have unfathomable power."

More than a few exchanged worried glances.

"What's recommended is a magic attack, though you should use anything but Demi. She seems to be near immune to it. Our weapons won't be effective, but I'm sure the damage we can inflict on her will be cumulative. I say we hit her with all we've got using our weapons and Limit Breaks, then at the end use magic to blow her to kingdom-come."

Sephiroth shook his head slightly.

"I'm afraid that would take too long. She will have had a chance to use a strong attack of her own and probably annihilate us. I say we use magic to create barriers and assault her with spells individually, while one person uses restorative magicks and hands out Ethers and such when they are required. The Limit Breaks can be used simultaneously and almost immediately after we can cast the combination spell. Ethers, elixirs or otherwise will have to be handed out before the large attacks and if you have Summons you want to use, use them before the large attacks as well. As an important precaution, if you notice the healer or anyone else for that matter a particular subject of attack, rush to defend them. It will force her back and you can work your spells together to get a stronger effect."

The group nodded appreciatively at his strategy. Cloud actually smiled at Sephiroth.

"That's pretty good. I couldn't have come up with a better strategy myself."

"I wouldn't imagine so. It's the longest thought over strategy I've ever done."

"Thought-over strategy? You don't think long on your strategies or what?"

"I usually take thirty seconds."

"And this one was your longest?! How long did you take?"

"Almost two minutes."

"Oh wow, that's _sooo_ long. You know some of the greatest generals in the world take hours to make their strategy?"

"But I'm not some of the greatest generals. I'm _the_ greatest general."

Loren laughed.

"Well, someone thinks highly of themselves."

"I've reason to."

Everyone conceded to Sephiroth's strategy and they boarded the airship to head to the battleground. Once on, Loren grabbed Sephiroth and led him inside the airship, a grin with an air of fear to it plastered on her face. Vincent watched the two of them go, feeling curiosity and a slight pang of something like sadness or even jealousy deep in his gut. He thought to himself. _'Do I still love her? Do I still love her after all of this? Of course I do; love never ends. It's because I love her that I'm letting her go. But it still hurts.'_ He heard Chaos making a mock sniff of sadness and disappointment.

"_Aww, I was getting all psyched for the battle and here you are making me sober. What a cruel game you play, Vince."_

'_Oh, shut up, Chaos. We'll be ready enough when the time comes. I have confidence in you.'_

"_What is this? Am I receiving a compliment from you?"_

'_Shut up, Chaos. You know what it is; don't question me about it.'_

"_So cold. I like it."_

'_Ugh, I must find a way to become happy.'_

"_Humph, fine Vincent, be that way."_

A couple minutes passed by and Loren came back out, a carefree smile on her face. She looked over her shoulder at Sephiroth, and said something that made the man blink a few times. He nodded and she turned back around, her black hair flying over her shoulders like a silken cloth. She started for Vincent now.

"Vincent, can you come with me? I want to talk to you in private."

He nodded dumbly and she started walking away to the inside of the ship again. He was led to the chocobo stable and Loren ushered the man inside out.

"What did you need to talk to me about?"

"I'm worried. I'm worried that something bad will happen during the battle. I'm worried about your son getting hurt. I'm worried about everything."

Vincent grabbed her hand.

"This isn't like you. You have no reason to be worried so don't be."

"No, you don't get it. I have this weird feeling in my gut like something bad is going to happen. It's making me worried about Sephiroth."

"Look, if something happens, I'm sure we'd be able to fix it. Don't be worried. You'll make fighting Jenova harder than it really is."

She looked at the ground. She licked her lip nervously.

"Yes, I know. It's just hard when you've got a gut instinct of fear in you and you can't shake it off."

Vincent nodded his agreement. He'd had feelings like that before. He placed his hand on her shoulder.

"It'll be alright. Just don't think about it."

With that, he gave her a quick peck and the cheek and left. Now alone, Loren sat on the floor, her knees to her chest, and looked up at the ceiling.

"I hope you're right…"

Within hours, they reached their destination: North Crater. Meteor darkened the skies even more here and created an ominous air. Yuffie shivered.

"This place gives me the creeps!"

Loren agreed.

"Yeah, even I'm a little chilled."

Sephiroth had a determined frown on his face.

"This place is the center of the world's current crisis. It would be natural for the place to be a little foreboding."

Cloud stood by Tifa, his hand on the hilt of his sword. Tifa showed no signs of backing down. Yuffie stood by Vincent, putting her game face on, while Vincent stood impassively, his gun in his hand. He blinked once.

"Darkness and untold evil lurks within the crevices of this place. But we all know that dissolution is at hand for the Calamity. With this in mind, the darkness should remain but a mere spectator and not a combatant."

Loren smiled. _'He sounds all philosophical-like, like he especially was near the end of the game. Heh, cool.'_ Red shook his mane. Cait twittered nervously. Cid seemed perfectly at ease, smoking a cigarette, spear looking positively deadly. Barret looked ready to rip Jenova to shreds. Red nodded.

"So it all ends here. We shall end the evil plaguing this world. Seto, are you proud of me?"

"I'm sure he would be. You'll be a grand parent yourself someday and a great leader."

Red looked to Loren, almost seeming to smile.

"You are too kind."

"No, I just like you. Besides, it's the truth."

He swished his tail lazily to show his gratitude. A soft rumble startled the group. All now had their weapons drawn. Sephiroth looked around warily. He held his hand out in front of him and everyone turned to him. Realization dawned as purple-glowing black specks started coalescing to form the Black Materia.

"It wasn't Jenova holding me back from summoning the Black Materia. It was the Crater itself. I can destroy it now."

The small orb hovered as if in water and seemed so perfect and beautiful. Who knew that it would be so deadly? Loren suddenly felt compelled to grab it and hide it somewhere where only she could find it. She resisted, but it was hard. Sephiroth poised his sword over the stone and prepared to cleave it in half. As he began its descent, Loren's will broke and she ran at him.

"NO!"

She grabbed the blade with the hand she didn't use her sword with and grabbed the stone. Blood ran like a thick river down her arm. Shocked, Sephiroth pulled back.

"What has come over you?"

He grabbed her hand and healed it before she could resist, but she quickly pulled back and clutched the materia to her chest.

"You can't destroy it."

"Why not?"

"It's too valuable."

After a few seconds' hesitation, Sephiroth raised his hand in a flash and slapped her with the force of a punch to the face. She stumbled back and fell to the ground. The materia flew out of her hands and landed a few feet away from them. Her eyes flashed dangerously.

"What was that for?"

"Don't let Jenova control you."

"What are you talking about?"

"What were you doing before I slapped you?"

"I saw the Black Materia hovering in the air and then…"

"You don't remember, do you?"

Loren muttered a long string of oaths under breath.

"I didn't know. I'm sorry."

"It wasn't your fault. But be careful."

Sephiroth turned to see Yuffie picking up the Materia. He pointed his sword at her.

"Drop it."

Paling, she placed it on the ground, where it started rising to chest level again. As he raised his sword once more, a great rumbling shook them to the ground and everything flashed white. When they could see again, they were near Corel. It was nearing dusk and dust flew in their eyes from the rugged land across the water. Sephiroth audibly cursed.

"She knew all along! She's taken us from the only place we can destroy Black Materia!"

As he finished his sentence, he seemed to lose all color in his face and he fell to the floor, quickly gasping for breath. He seemed near unconsciousness seeing as that he was shaking weakly. Loren quickly consulted with Death.

'_Help me! His power has been taken from him!'_

"_What would you have of me?"_

'_The power of his that's in me. Can you help me try to put that power in him?'_

"_That will be difficult, but we can give it our best effort."_

'_Thank you, Death.'_

"No need to thank me just yet."

Loren placed her hands on Sephiroth's arms, concentrating for all she was worth. Her eyes flashed sea green as his power left her and returned to its true owner. It was only a fraction of his power but he needed it. Some color returned to him, but he seemed far from well. He looked tired and beat down. He stood on unsure legs, but seemed totally calm. She handed him an Elixir but he refused it. Nevertheless, she made him down the concoction. As much as he revolted using the potion, he seemed better. He picked up his sword, frowning as he held it.

"It seems heavier."

Cloud raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"Hey. Are you okay?"

Sephiroth looked at Cloud.

"Yes, I'm fine. Thank you."

Cloud shrugged. The group heard a sickly sweet laughter ring behind them. Weapons ready, they turned to see whom they had come to kill. They didn't get what they expected. It was Jenova, all right, but she was human in appearance. Her eyes threw it off due to the fact that they were white with just little black dots for pupils. Her skin also had a sickly purplish tinge to it and her hands were vein-y. Sephiroth looked feral.

"Jenova."

"You speak so coldly, my so--"

"I AM NOT YOUR SON!!! DO NOT DARE LIE TO ME!!!"

With a sinister smile, she waved her hand to the side and Sephiroth flew into the mountain nearby. He grunted in pain, not allowing his sword to fly from his grip. Baring his teeth, he shouted to the group.

"Don't forget the strategy!"

Everyone nodded and began casting their spells. Changing to her demon form, Loren imbued her scythe with fire properties. Choosing to be decoy, she flew at Jenova, no other thought at mind than that of hurting her enemy severely. As she blinked, Jenova suddenly disappeared just to reappear behind her. She heard a late shout of 'Look out!' and she landed face down in the grass, her head exploding with pain. She recovered quickly and charged Jenova again whom lightning, fire, ice, comets, and earth were promptly slamming into. She ended up face down in the ground again, blood seeping from her mouth. How was Jenova so fast? Even though the planet itself had advised it, Jenova seemed unfazed by the magic attacks that were being quad-cast, mimed, and powered up by supportive materia. Loren rose again, keeping herself steady and checking if Regen and Wall were still in effect and quickly cast Cure 3/All with the materia she had equipped. She almost cringed when she heard Jenova's voice again.

"You bore me. Make my play with you amusing. Let me watch you break."

Loren felt a quick flash of worry.

"_Absolute Darkness_!"

"Oh, no…"

As she finished her sentence, she was swept into utter blackness and she assumed everyone else had, too. She could see no one else and wanted to run around, but something seemed to be holding her in place. The time that transpired next seemed to take forever. Though Loren couldn't see, Cloud too was rooted in place. He seemed almost desperate to be free as his eyes widened and then his face twisted in rage.

"JENOVA!!!"

Loren pondered why he would be so angry, but soon saw as something akin to mist flattened out in front of them. Images began forming in the mist and then developed into what she recognized as a memory. Cloud was in a truck with a spiky haired man with bright blue eyes._ 'Zack,'_ she noted. She immediately knew the memory and prayed Cloud wouldn't go berserk. A thought occurred to her. If she could hear everyone else, could they hear her?

"Cloud!"

The blond turned to her voice.

"Loren?"

"Yes! Don't let the memory affect you!"

Cloud in the memory remained oblivious to Zack's words. The present Cloud, also remembering this buried memory, shouted to Zack.

"Get out of there! You idiot! Duck, jump, do something!"

Zack suddenly switched attitude.

"Cloud!"

He buried Cloud under his body as bullets rained down from above. Cloud yelled his protest.

"No, save yourself you idiot!"

Zack in the memory paid no heed, of course, and it faded out to where they were nearing Midgar. Zack cursed. Bullets flew past him.

"Damn! Cloud, just run! We're almost there!"

He put Cloud on the ground, who simply lay there, unmoving. Zack braced himself and was abruptly shot. As he struggled to get off the ground, Shinra soldiers ran up to him and repeatedly shot him. When he no longer rose, they looked to Cloud. They disregarded him quickly.

"He's half-dead anyway. Just leave him here."

Cloud's voice was hoarse.

"Damn it…Zack…why didn't you just run?"

The Cloud in the mist grabbed Zack's sword and crawled to the edge of the cliff. At the same time, Cloud fell to his knees. Once memory Cloud raised his sword, both shouted at the top of their lungs. As he wept, he faded into the darkness. Loren struggled against her paralysis.

"Cloud!"

Tifa could now be heard.

"Cloud! Cloud! Where are you?"

Loren answered.

"I can't hear him either! He may have disappeared!"

"Loren?"

Again, the mist began forming images. It was Tifa in her little cowgirl outfit. Loren knew where this was going. Nibelheim was on fire and Tifa was running to the mountains. Zangan called after her.

"Tifa! Don't go; you'll be killed!"

The girl ignored her teacher's words and kept running. Eventually, she saw her father in the reactor.

"Papa!"

"…Tifa…"

"Who did this? Sephiroth did this, didn't he?"

"Run…Tifa…"

The man now lay lifeless in her arms.

"Papa…PAPA!!"

After she cried for a while, she stood. The live Tifa was shaking in rage.

"Sephiroth…SOLDIER…Mako Reactors…Shinra…Everything! I HATE THEM ALL!!!"

"How dare you…? JENOVA!!!"

Tifa, also, faded into the darkness. One by one, everyone's worst memories played out in front of everyone, some breaking into sobs, others screaming for Jenova's blood. Loren knew that it was down to her and Sephiroth. Figures began reshaping themselves and she recognized Hojo on the spot. He was skimming through some files when he saw a teenage Sephiroth enter the room. He put the files away, agitation lining his features.

"What do you want, boy?"

"I only came to retrieve my sword, Professor. I didn't come to disturb you."

"You'd best not be. You already take enough of my time during the day."

"You never had to take time from your day for me. Why complain about it if you do it of your own free will?"

"Don't give me lip, boy."

"Why not? You always give me things that I don't want. Why don't I give you some Mako injections and see how it feels? Why do I always seem to be the center of your disappointment? If you just paid attention, maybe you'd see just how much I'm doing for you! I'm not your damn lab rat!"

Hojo stood and slapped Sephiroth.

"You are my lab rat! You are my specimen, my experiment, subject to my whims and expectations! I do not need to give you praise or attention. You are a thing, something meant only to give me results, not opinions!"

"Well I don't want to be your experiment! I want to be a normal kid with a normal life with normal strength. I don't want to be a freak! I'm a human just like you! Why don't you just take a minute to treat me like one?"

He flashed his arm to the side and suddenly, the files on his right, the files Hojo had been previously looking at, caught fire. Hojo widened his eyes in rage. Sephiroth quickly extinguished the flames with some nearby water and barely had enough time to look at Hojo when he was pushed and quickly strapped to a vertical experiment table. His shirt was torn off and he became almost afraid. He felt sharp lashes on his back and gave a cry of pain before he could restrain himself.

"You failed experiment! You worthless specimen! You pathetic excuse for a wannabe human being! You moronic creature! I should have killed you when I saw how worthless you were ten years ago!"

"I hate you! What kind of twisted parent are you, to experiment on and torture your own child? You are the worthless one!"

"Shut up, you failure! You are not to speak out of turn to me again! You are to join SOLDIER and not come back until you have gained superior status!"

He increased the intensity of the lashes.

"Ahh! I will never do anything you say! You are a monster, Hojo!"

"You are the monster, specimen, not I."

He gave a few more lashes then went over to his desk, and returned with a pair of scissors. Sephiroth, who had slumped in his bonds, went rigid again as Hojo cut his hair right under his ears. He struggled as Hojo lightly caressed the bleeding wounds on his back and his voice turned sickly sweet.

"My precious experiment…"

"Get away from me you homosexual bastard!"

He felt Hojo's lips on his ear and shuddered in disgust.

"I'm afraid you've spoken out of turn, Sephiroth."

"At least you didn't deny it."

"You hopeless boy…"

He bit Sephiroth's ear hard, then disappeared. When he came back, Sephiroth didn't know until a long needle punctured his arm. He gritted his teeth in pain, but didn't voice it this time. He felt the Mako working its way through his system. He felt another needle enter his other arm and another hit his back. Hojo was at his ear again.

"This is going to hurt."

"Wha---"

He felt a final needle, that of Jenova cells enter his neck. He screamed in pain this time as the cells made their burning way inside of him. Against the steel table, he saw his own eyes flare. He felt the Mako meet the Jenova cells as a new pain erupted in him. His screams grew as they changed to sheer agony. Hojo, sneering, stood in the doorway.

"Scream in your solitude. No one will hear you. No one will save you. Endure this pain for the next week in solitude. You are an experiment. No one will care."

As he turned his back to the screaming teen, he chose to add one last cutting statement.

"Oh. And no one will ever love you. I, for one, never did."

With that he left, leaving Sephiroth, as he had said, to his screaming solitude.

Loren heard Sephiroth curse for all he was worth and heard his sword being vehemently swung through the air.

"Sephiroth!"

"Argh!"

"Calm down! Hojo's dead now! You got your revenge! Let go! It was only a memory!"

Her words met an abrupt silence.

"…you're right…Thank you."

"Look, if you see everyone again once you fade into the darkness, tell them what I told you, okay?"

"…I'll try."

His voice was heard no longer and she knew she was the only one left. She stood firm and awaited her memory, a tinge of something akin to fear plaguing her. The mist began its now usual reformation. The figure she saw was of the man she knew was her true father. He was rather handsome, his shoulder-length wavy black hair greatly contrasting from his fair skin and blue eyes. Her mother stood in front of him, her hands balled into fists at his side, her gray eyes on fire. She couldn't remember this. She heard Jenova's voice in her head.

"_For you, I will make sure you suffer. You caused me too much trouble."_

Loren crossed her arms.

'_Oh, am I going to have the time of my life…'_

Her mother was shouting obscenities at her father, who was visibly recoiling from her attack.

"You say you work hard, but where's the money? Does it disappear in a few drinks?"

"No, Virginia, why don't you understand that I just don't get a lot of money? I only get eight fifty an hour!"

"That's not good enough! I get paid sixteen hundred dollars a week!"

"That's because you're probably a prostitute on the side!"

"What good are you, you mangy mutt, if you don't have a six-figure income?"

"Excuse me, I didn't think you were a gluttonous whore when I married you! You seemed nice enough!"

The two were nose to nose and a frightened four-year-old Loren was watching from behind a wall.

"You seemed wealthy enough when I married you!"

"That's all you think about isn't it, Virginia? Money! That's all you think about!"

"You can't get anywhere without money! You can't get the luxuries of the world without money!"

He turned from her.

"You reek of greed!"

"And you reek of filth!"

"Daddy?"

The man froze. He turned and looked at the little girl clinging to her mother's leg. The girl looked up at her mother.

"Mommy? Please don't fight!"

Loren's mother seemed to lose it for a second and she grabbed Loren's hair. She slapped the child and threw her to the wall where she landed in a heap.

"Loren!"

Her father went up to her mother and slapped her so hard that she flew to the wall opposite the one Loren was clinging to as she rose. He grabbed Virginia's throat, his eyes flaring.

"Never…hit…our…daughter! You hit her again and I'll kill you! You hear that? I'll kill you!"

Virginia sneered.

"What happened to your kindness?"

"It deserted me and went to hell the moment you hit Loren."

"The little moron will probably end up just like you, poor, weak, and stupid. She looks like you to begin with."

"At least she won't end up like you---greedy, vain, and corrupt."

He released her and started walking over to Loren when Virginia jumped on him, wrapping her arms around his throat. He quickly grabbed her arms and flipped her over his shoulder. She landed with a dull thud and didn't move from her spot, though her hand flexed repeatedly. He looked coldly down at her.

"And stay down."

Loren was softly crying. He gently wiped a tear from her eye. He looked guilty.

"Please don't cry, Beautiful. I'm sorry Daddy seems so mean right now. I just don't like it when Mommy hurts you or me."

"Why does Mommy hurt us?"

"She's confused, my love. She's very confused."

"Why?"

"I don't know. All I know is that I have to get you out of here. We're going to leave, okay?"

"But I need to take care of Mommy. I'm strong."

He tousled her hair lightly.

"I knew you're strong, Loren, but Mommy needs to help herself before she gets someone else's help."

She took a long look at her mother then took her father's hand. It changed scenes to where she, her mother, and her father were in court. Her mother was crying.

"And then he hit me and threatened to kill me!"

The jury gave sent each other horrified glances. The judge leaned forward.

"He threatened to kill you?"

"Yes, just because I told him to leave Loren alone after he had struck her!"

Her father pounded the table.

"That is a lie! The situation was reversed!"

"I must ask you to remain silent, Mr. Reninfield."

He sat down obediently.

"So what did he do after that?"

"He started to walk back to Loren and I thought he was going to hit her again, so I jumped on him. He flipped me, spoke sweet words to our daughter, and then took off with her!"

"No, I…"

"Reninfield, I ask for the last time your silence."

The image blurred again. The verdict was being read.

"Virginia Reninfield, you are granted custody of the child, Loren Reninfield. Richard Reninfield, you are hereby denied any visitation rights and are not to enter within 100 feet of the premises of Ms. Virginia's home."

Richard hung his head.

"May I have one final request?"

"What may that be?"

"Can I say good-bye to my daughter?"

The judge hesitated.

"You will be monitored."

"Understood."

When everyone was dismissed, Richard knelt to hug his daughter to him. The little girl clung tightly, for she knew this would be the last time she would see him. He stared into her gray eyes and he could see his sorrow reflected in them.

"Be good for me, okay Loren?"

She nodded slowly.

"And…despite how much I regret my choice in marrying her…I never regretted having you. You are beautiful and I know you'll be nothing like your mother. Take care of yourself."

"Daddy…"

"Don't cry, my love. Maybe one day, you'll see me again."

The aged Loren let out a cry as he turned and left, a tear making its way down his cheek.

"FATHER!!!"

She was finally released from her bonds. She promptly fell to her knees.

"I…I didn't know…why…Fatherrr!!!"

Another scene showed up and her mother kicked her forward.

"Hurry up, you worthless idiot! Stephen will be here any minute! Luckily he has black hair like you and I screwed him a week after I was pregnant with you, so he can't really tell that you're not his. This man is made of money, so treat him like a god. He is much better than your father, so treat him so!"

Loren nodded quickly and was quickly yanked by the hair.

"And smile, for God's sakes! You look like a retarded dog just standing there like a stone!"

She opened the door and a portly man with stubble lining his face smiled at her.

"Virginia! Good to see you!"

Virginia gave him a look and gestured down.

"That's her."

He looked down at Loren and his smile grew wider. He extended his hand toward her.

"Well, hello!"

Loren flinched from his hand. He frowned slightly, a little disappointed and withdrew his hand.

"I'm not so sure she likes me, dear."

Virginia turned a sinister smile to Loren.

"Oh, I'm sure she will."

Loren restrained whimpering. The day suddenly changed to night and it focused on a room with only a lamp, a bed, and a blanket. Loren was on the bed, gagged, while her mother whipped her bare bottom with a belt.

"You will like Stephen, understand? You are to revere him and love him and smile at everything he does! You will not ruin my life, you insolent little bitch!"

The image changed to another day, but the same scene. Her mother was smiling.

"Don't make a mess in the kitchen again, or I swear I will hang you by your toes from the ceiling. Or…if you want, you can hang yourself and get it over with."

She threw the belt on the floor and left. It changed to another day. She was growing frustrated at the child's refusal to make a sound.

"Scream! I want to see you cry! Cry damn it!"

Loren gave a muffled whimper. She received several lashes in turn.

"That's what you get for giving in!"

It changed again and again, different days, different years, but it was all the same thing. The same beating repeated itself night after night. Her mother screamed at her.

"SUFFER!!"

The present Loren grabbed her head and screamed back.

"NOOO!!!!"

She grabbed her scythe and sliced the image in two. The mist disappeared and she felt the darkness swallow her. When she opened her eyes, they were in the open field again, but the condition of the party was pathetic. Half were broken, the other half were enraged and a couple were devoid. Loren herself was somewhat enraged but she did not let that rage consume her. Sephiroth was now calm and trying to restore the others to their former conditions. Loren pondered a theory and gave the enraged people tranquilizers and the devoid people Hypers. It worked somewhat, but the enraged people were still a little out of it. Focusing her anger into determination, she stood in front of the group.

"All right, guys. I know you all are angry and depressed, but think of who did this. This is Jenova's doing. She has renewed your suffering and past hatreds. Focus your anger into strength. Focus your depression into determination! With the pain she has caused us, we must put an end to her!"

She had their focus now.

"Make Jenova suffer ten-fold for the pain she caused you! Make her suffer for the pain she caused Aeris, Nibelheim, everyone and everything! We can end this! She unwittingly gave us the motivation to do so! Should we not thank her for it?"

The group nodded and determination conquered all of their faces. She turned to see Jenova seemingly smirking at them. Loren smiled.

"Oh and Jenova? You have helped me. I now know what kind of father I had. I will not just pass him next time. Thank you. Let me pay you back for all the help you've given me."

Cloud stood next to her.

"Let's all pay you back."

Sephiroth took his place on her left.

"We owe you so much."

Vincent nodded, wings sprouted on his back.

"You made us realize that memories are just that---memories. They needn't affect us because they are not what make us who we are. We are what make the memory."

Tifa stood by Cloud. She had a firm smile on.

"Yeah. Now we know that we don't have to lose out to a memory."

Loren returned to her normal body.

"So let's thank you…with all our hearts!"

With speed faster than she had ever accomplished, she whipped out her sword and stuck it in the ground. Holding on to the hilt she balanced herself upside down and spun around, tearing the dirt around the sword. A red aura engulfed her sword and she landed in front of it, still holding on to the sword. With a great cry, she tore the sword out of the ground and shot the red aura at Jenova. It changed as it soared towards her and it became a great pillar of fire.

"Fiend Inferno!"

When Jenova came out of the fire, she wasn't exactly as pretty as she was before. Her skin was a mottled grey and was showing the veins all over her body. She growled as she saw more of the group coming at her, their speeds also miraculously heightened. They all did their Final Limit Breaks and Sephiroth showed a new attack. He copied himself four times (he's basically pulling a very complex Morrigan thing) as his sword began to glow a blinding white (Masamune is a holy or at least, good sword, after all) and he surrounded Jenova. He proceeded to slash at her repeatedly with a speed faster than humanly possible and all four stabbed through her at once. (A/N: Hmm…if I saw that in a game or movie or something, I would say that might probably pwn Omnislash, cuz that just looks friggin cool in my head! S: Shut up, you're ruining the mood! ES: Sorry.)

"Dissolution!"

Having suffered many wounds, Jenova looked absolutely horrifying now. In an inhuman voice she screeched at the top of her lungs, causing the ground to rumble and crack open. A greenish glow emanated from the fissure and it was then known that Mako flowed there. It didn't really seem appropriate to call it a fissure though. The 'cracks' were larger than anyone could jump and were at a minimum fifty feet deep. Jenova lifted her hand in the air and surprisingly, a ball of Mako rose from the fissure. She launched her hand forward and the ball flew at the group, the condensed energy acting as a cannonball. With a desperate plan in mind, Loren willed her thoughts to Sephiroth. He looked to her, nodded his consent, and the two charged at Jenova. Off guard from her pleasing sport, Jenova yowled as her hands were neatly dismembered. Loren knew it was time.

"The combo attack! Do it now!"

She began casting fire and the group began casting their selected spell. As they focused their energies on a combined attack, Loren noticed that a ball of energy was growing in front of her. She smiled, knowing they trusted her. When she looked up, she saw that Jenova was busy regenerating her hands. The sphere of power began giving off its own wind and her hair began flying back. It was about the size of a lion's head now. She closed her eyes as the raw power began to burn her hands. It was still bright under her eyelids and she saw Aeris touch the air in front of her.

"_Let's finish this."_

The sphere took an intensely bright glow and when Loren could no longer stand it, she loosed the energy on Jenova. The creature screamed in pain and Loren looked away from the bright explosion. When she looked back Jenova was still standing, but with a limb missing and a great hole in her chest. Her skin was burnt, but you could still see the rage plainly on her face. Loren looked to Sephiroth who wore a grim smile of satisfaction. She smiled at him. When she looked at Jenova again, she saw that Jenova was dissolving, and saw that she wasn't too happy about it. She put her sword in the ground.

"Good-bye…Jenova."

"_I…think not…"_

Loren furrowed her eyebrows. With half of her leg gone, she screeched again one last time. She raised her arm and a ball of Mako rose. She launched the ball at Loren as soon as the rest of her vanished. The Mako-cannonball hit Loren square in the chest and sent her flying backwards. Sephiroth ran towards her.

"Loren!!"

Right before unconsciousness, she knew what was going to happen as she saw the green glow growing behind her. She closed her eyes and hoped it was quick.

"Sephiroth…"

Death shouted at her.

"_Loren! Loren! Snap out of it! Come on! Lore---"_

"LOREN!!!"

He couldn't have reached her in time. She was going too fast. Sephiroth yelled for her again, futilely. He punched the ground.

"Loren! Why? WHY!?"

In another plane of existence

The planet already knew her fate, and it wasn't going to let it change. She would not be allowed to enter the Lifestream. Not yet.

Aeris's voice _"You still have something you have to do. Confront your past and accept it all. Only then can you be ready for the future."_

Where Cloud and co. are

Tifa shouted for the group to come see.

"Look, there she is! She's…oh…Loren…"

Sephiroth held his face in one hand.

"What is it?"

"She's been…she's been crystallized."

Sephiroth went to the edge and looked down at the large crystal floating in the Mako. With Jenova's death, his strength returned to him. He floated down to the crystal and with telekinesis raised it from its pool. He placed his hands on the front of the crystal, gazing at the captive inside. He set the stone down some ways from the Mako fissure.

"Loren…I just remembered something."

He summoned the Black Materia forth. He glared at it hatefully. He then promptly sliced it in two and its remnants faded into nothingness. Just as the stone did, Meteor, to the astonishment and joy of the group, simply disappeared. He went and grabbed her sword, planting it in the ground next to her. He stared at the sky.

"What was it all for if you aren't here?"

Cloud hesitatingly placed a comforting hand on Sephiroth's shoulder.

"Hey, she's still here. Even if she can't move or talk, she's still here. She might even be able to hear us now."

"Thank you, Cloud."

"It's as much for me as it is for you."

"We'll each go our own way. Maybe someday when we're needed or something important happens, we'll see each other again."

"Yeah. Here. This PHS was Aeris's. Use it if you ever need it."

"Thank you."

"You were a great help, Sephiroth. Be careful."

"I will."

Cloud smiled at Loren.

"Thanks for everything. We all love you. I hope you remember that always."

Tifa looked up at the silent figure.

"You mean a lot to me. Don't forget us. I'll never forget you."

Everyone said their good-byes and soon left. Sephiroth, sitting on the ground, looked up at the only person he'd ever love.

"I never thought it would end like this. I never thought you'd be gone."

His words met silence.

"I just want you to know, Loren…I love you…"

He buried his head in his knees and sat, unmoving, thinking only of when he'd never been able to tell her to her face how he felt, flat out and resolute. Well, now he'd told her. All he could do was pray that she had heard.


	21. Epilogue

Ten years have passed. The group has gone their separate ways but has come together once in a while to attend a wedding, random parties, and city meetings with Mideel, which was now planning to rebuild itself. In the past years, many problems have presented themselves. Kadaj and his brothers appeared (Geostigma has a somewhat altered meaning now because Meteor never got close enough; the planet was still pissed, though.) and recreated an evil Sephiroth, whom Cloud very much disliked and wished to stay in his memories. Soon after Kadaj, Loz, and Yazoo were eliminated, the Svliets appeared from Deepground under the control of Weiss. Vincent personally took care of this. Lucrecia had herself turned into a crystal in an attempt to find Loren's consciousness and try to bring her back, but she failed. After Vincent had finished in his quest, she broke free. Other than that, everything had remained pretty normal.

Jenova wasn't at peace. She was plotting her revenge. Suddenly, she knew. She let herself be absorbed into the Lifestream but kept all her coherent thoughts together. After a short time, the Lifestream became infected. Parts of it turned black with the disease named Jenova. Due to the Lifestream's new taint, a new type of being was born. These beings were not humanoid, but quite grotesque in appearance and stronger than anything the pure Lifestream could have created. The taint was evil and affected the monsters greatly. They turned to the towns. The towns became prey and one by one they began to fall. The heroes were called into action once again as the world again was put in danger by Jenova's taint. Far away, a final memory was playing. While a battle was being fought, a marvel was about to occur. Under no one's sight, Loren remained unmoving and expressionless. Sephiroth went up to her.

"I'll be back. I need to help Cloud. I won't be long, I promise."

Taking one last long look, he left. Ten minutes after he had gone, an ethereal gasp sounded. A crack appeared in the crystal and slowly, Loren's eyes opened…

A/N: Dun-dun-duun! Hee-hee, cliffhangers. This is the end of the story, Accident With a Pepsi. Of course there is going to be a sequel by the name of Trying Again. I hope you all liked it!

L: I would hope so. I friggin died!

C: Umm…what does dying have to do with anything?

L: Kills Cloud There, now how do you feel?

ES: I smell coffee…

Loren and ES enter room resembling a dining room. Sephiroth, in boxers, is reading a book and drinking out of a coffee mug labeled "#1 Bad Guy" He notices the two females

S: Hey, I'm on vacation here!

ES: snaps a photo That's hilarious. I must save this.

S: You show that to anyone, I'll kill you.

ES: alters Loren's personality

L: holds Sephiroth close It's okay, baby, she won't do anything bad with it.

S: What have you done with Loren?

ES: Failed persuasion. Fine. makes Loren normal again

L: Did I just call you 'baby'?

S: Yes.

ES: steals Masamune and clutches it to her chest Mine.

S: flares Give that back. Now.

ES: starts running You'll have to catch me first! HA HA HA!!!

S: Teleports and clutches her close I'll be having that back now.

ES: Umm…you're rather close…can you back off?

S: moves within mere molecules away from her face My sword. I want my sword.

ES: flushes Umm…you already have your sword. What are you thinking about?

S: confused What? realizes what's happening Oh $#! I'm sorry!

ES: logical Boxers are very thin. Friction, body heat…there's a lot of things to trigger…_that_.

L: eye twitches FLAMING TEMPEST!!!!!! A storm of meteors and tidal wave (!?) of fire engulf ES and Sephiroth

ES & S: Ow…

S: snatches his sword back _Thank_ you.

ES: deletes ashes Geez, I'm sorry.

L: kills ES don't come near him again.

ES: revived Protective much?

L: Damn straight.

ES: Look, he didn't do it on purpose. I didn't want him that close, anyway. He's all yours, remember?

L: I would hope so.

S: anger vein Look, can you two leave? I'm on vacation and I want to read my book.

ES: You reading…I find it hard to imagine that.

S: Too bad. Leave now.

L: If you wish.

S: changes attitudes Don't say it like that. I just want to relax.

L: I'm the dead one here.

S: Sorry.

Yuffie runs across the room, randomly shouting

Y: Sexist! Sexist!

Cid follows, waving his spear around

Cd: I am not sexist! You just get your little hiny over here and I'll show you what sexist is!

ES: taken aback Cid, what are you implying?

Cd: flushes Don't take it the wrong way! There's a video I have that shows examples of sexist people from a long time ago! It's proof that I'm _not_ sexist!

L: Odd way to give proof. At least don't chase her with a raised spear!

Cd: abashed Yeah, I guess that would help.

L: Now go. She's probably half a mile away from you by now.

Cd: Okay. Leaves

ES: suddenly seized by a manic streak, summons Kadaj

K: What? Where am I---? is brutally kissed by ES Mmph!

L: What the hell? Who's he?

S: A teenage remnant of me, I assume.

L: Hey you! How old are you? What's your name?

K: rising for air I…am not sure. I think I am 15 or 17. My name is Kadaj. Smirks at the manic ES; they resume their frenzied kissing.

L: He's young. At least he's not you, though.

S: At least.

Loz and Yazoo appear. Yazoo sees Kadaj and ES and sighs

Y: Why does he always get them?

Lz: I want to play, too.

Y: It isn't a game we can all play. It's more of a one-on-one game.

Lz: Can you and me play?

Y: appalled That's a game for two people of the opposite gender and of people not related.

Lz: pouts

Y: Don't cry Loz.

Lz: I'm not crying! Sees Loren Want to play?

L: I'd rather play with him. Points to Sephiroth

Lz: Not that game. Another. Raises hands elegantly and assumes fighting stance

L: smiles That one I'll gladly play. Draws sword

Lz: disappears

L: smile drops What? Great, another teleporter. Is promptly smacked into a wall by an electrical current running through his weapon Ungh!

Lz: I want to try the new game.

L: Uh…is strongly kissed by Loz!!!!!

S: plucks Loz off Loren and throws him into the next continent

Y: You…are you our brother?

S: Brother?

Y: Yes, you bear resemblance to us. You must be Sephiroth.

S: Yes, I am Sephiroth. I don't know how I could be your brother, though.

Y: We are all the children of Mother. You must be the first child.

S: Jenova is not my mother.

Y: I see. I must have been mistaken.

L: This one looks a lot like you.

S: He's missing the bangs.

L: Yeah. Your hair would've been longer, but it's only grown an inch since I cut it off.

S: winces Don't remind me. looks over at ES, who is fixedly focusing on creating fire in her hand. Kadaj, one arm holding on to her from behind, is with apparent ease holding a little fireball in the other hand.

ES: Must…create…fire…

K: You just need to focus a little.

ES: Fire…must…focus…a tiny fireball forms in her palm I did it!! Uwah-hah! it fizzles out Aww…

K: Try again.

S: Heh. Cute.

L: Did you just say 'cute'?

S: Yes I did.

L: Wow.

Loz appears in the doorway

Lz: That hurt.

S: Don't kiss Loren then.

Lz: I just wanted to play.

S: Play with someone else.

Lz: …

S: Oh, come on, don't cry!

Lz: Ok…

ES: Argh!

a very toasty ES is frowning

ES: Okay, no more fire.

S: Are you a little more sedate?

ES: I guess. Depressive wave seizes her Kadaj!

K: Yes?

ES: Take me home!

K: Okay.

S: Someone's bipolar.

K: evil glare Don't speak of her. Come on; let's get out of here.

L: gives Seph a once-over I never noticed how structured you are.

S: raises an eyebrow Oh?

L: I'll race you.

S: Please.

L: Come on then! Go! Starts running

S: laughs as he starts running There's no way you'll beat me!

L: Catch up then!

Lz: at the end of the finishing line I beat you both.

S & L (running alongside each other): SUPER INFERNO!

Lz: Mommy. incinerates

L: I beat you! Tough luck, love!

S: I was distracted.

L: Laughs It's okay, I'll let you beat me someday.

S: traps her against a wall That day will come sooner than you realize.

L: Am I intimidating you?

S: You silly girl. Don't you know that I've already beaten you?

L: How?

S: Kisses her; she melts in his arms That's how.

L: Okay…

ES: in her living room eating popcorn with Kadaj Sniff…sniff…please…review…oohhhhh!!! Kadaj, why is the world so cruel?

K: It's okay.

ES: manic phase You're right. Thank you. Review please. Attacks Kadaj's mouth

K: laughs rises for air Yes, please review.

ES: I love you guys! Thanks for sticking by me the whole way! Kisses Kadaj again

K: laughs in his chest moans contentedly

S: All right people, we've seen enough! Let's get out of here. Grabs his #1 Bad Guy mug and Loren

L: Weee!!!

End…


End file.
